England clinch their second T20 World Cup title: Key takeaways
What's the story
England clinched their second ICC T20 World Cup title after beating Pakistan in the final. The Englishmen chased 138, overcoming hostile spells from Pakistan's bowlers. All-rounder Ben Stokes turned out to be England's hero in another big final (52*), having slammed his maiden T20I fifty. England have become the first side to hold the T20 and ODI World Cup titles simultaneously.
Stokes
Stokes shines on the big stage
Stokes gains redemption after the horror of the 2016 T20 World Cup final. Six years later, the senior all-rounder bailed England out after they were in a spot of bother this time. He slammed his maiden T20I fifty in a big final. Stokes finished with an unbeaten 52 (49). In 2019, Stokes' unbeaten 84 powered England to the 50-over World Cup title.
Curran
Third-best figures in a T20 World Cup final
Pace spearhead Sam Curran was adjudged the Player of the Final and the Tournament. The left-arm seamer finished with figures of 3/12, the third-best by a player in a T20 World Cup final. Curran finished as the leading wicket-taker of the Super 12 stage (13). Only Dirk Nannes has picked more wickets in a single edition (14 in 2010) among pacers.
Information
Most wickets by an England bowler in a T20 WC
Curran now has the most wickets by an England bowler in a single edition of the T20 World Cup. Ryan Sidebottom (2010), Graeme Swann (2010), and David Willey (2016) jointly held the record earlier for England. The trio took 10 wickets each.
Bowling
Naseem Shah, Haris Rauf exhibit sheer pace
Pakistan bowlers played valiantly while defending a low score. England, who once had a run-a-ball equation, lost the plot in the middle overs. They hit just three boundaries from the end of the Powerplay till the 16th over. Pakistan seamers Naseem Shah and Haris Rauf thwarted the England batters with sheer pace. Some of the deliveries were just unplayable.
Injury
An injury that ended Pakistan's hopes
England required 41 off 30 balls when Shaheen Afridi came to bowl the 16th over. However, he struggled to get going after his first delivery. Afridi returned to the dugout after sustaining some serious pain in his knees. Pakistan and their hopes were in tatters as he walked off. Iftikhar Ahmed bowled the rest of the balls, having conceded 13 runs.
Numbers
A look at some interesting numbers
As per Deepu Narayanan, the chasing side has won each of the last 11 T20 WC knockouts. In the 2022 edition, England's boundary percentage (scored) was 13.8, while their boundary percentage (conceded) was 12.0. In the inaugural edition (2007), a left-handed pacer (Irfan Pathan) won the Player of the Match award after Pakistan lost the final. It was the case this time too (Curran).
Wickets
Most wickets for Pakistan in T20Is
It was a breakthrough tournament for Pakistan all-rounder Shadab Khan. He conceded just 20 runs in four overs in the final. Shadab took the crucial wicket of Harry Brook, which brought Pakistan back in the hunt. The former is now the leading wicket-taker for Pakistan in T20I cricket. He overtook legend Shahid Afridi (97) by taking his 98th wicket.