T20 WC: NZ meet England with semi-final berth at stakes
What's the story
England and New Zealand will clash in Match 49 of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026. The game is set to take place at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday, February 27. While England have already secured their semi-final spot after two consecutive victories in the Super 8 stage, the Kiwis can also go through with a win in this encounter. Here we look at the match preview.
Team performance
New Zealand need to win to secure semi-final berth
NZ, whose Super 8 campaign started with a no-result against Pakistan, bounced back strongly with a 61-run victory over SL. The win improved their net run rate and made them favorites to qualify for the semis from this group. However, if they lose this match, their fate would rely on the Pakistan-Sri Lanka fixture. Meanwhile, England back-to-back wins secured their semi-final spot. They first defeated Sri Lanka by 51 runs and then chased down Pakistan's total in a nail-biting finish.
Venue analysis
Pitch report and other details
The iconic R Premadasa Stadium in Sri Lanka has hosted five matches in the tournament so far. Out of these, four times the team batting first has won while only once has the chasing side emerged victorious. Despite this trend, chasing remains a popular choice among teams and is likely to be witnessed again. The match, which will get underway at 7:00pm IST, will be broadcasted on JioStar Network Channels and live-streamed on JioHotstar (App & Website).
Rivalry
A look at the head-to-head record
As per ESPNcricinfo, England and New Zealand have faced each other 30 times in T20Is. England have won 17 of those encounters while New Zealand have emerged victorious on 10 occasions with three matches ending in no results. One of England's win was also determined via the Super Over. In T20 World Cups, the head-to-head record is 4-3 in England's favor.
Team line-ups
A look at the probable XIs
England predicted XI: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (wk), Harry Brook (c), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Jamie Overton, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid. New Zealand predicted XI: Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Cole McConchie, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson.
Star performers
Players to watch out for
England captain Harry Brook made 100 runs off just 51 balls in his last outing against Pakistan. Spinner Adil Rashid has done well in this competition, claiming nine wickets in six innings at 20.11. New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner recently became the first player from his country to complete the T20I double of 1,000 runs and 100 wickets. Tim Seifert has scored 181 runs from five matches in this tourney at a strike rate of 161.60.
Poll
