England beat New Zealand (ENG vs NZ) by 4 wickets in Friday’s T20 World Cup Super 8 clash, making it three wins in a row for them in this stage. New Zealand batted first and put up 159 for 7 in their 20 overs. Glenn Phillips led the way with 39. Adil Rashid and Will Jacks both grabbed two wickets for England. This result will hand Pakistan a good chance to qualify for the semi-finals.
England’s chase didn’t start well. Phil Salt went back for just two and Jos Buttler didn’t even get off the mark. Harry Brook, the skipper, made 26 off 24 balls and he hit three boundaries and a six before getting out. Jacob Bethell chipped in with 21 from 16, Sam Curran added 24 from 22 and Banton scored a quick 33 off 24 balls.
New Zealand’s openers, Finn Allen and Tim Seifert gave them a decent start. Seifert made 36 off 25 before Adil Rashid got him. Allen scored 29 from 19 before being caught by Will Jacks. Rachin Ravindra could only manage 11 as Rehan Ahmed dismissed him. Mark Chapman hit 15 from 9, Daryl Mitchell struggled for 3 runs from 8 balls and Phillips anchored things with his 39. Cole chipped in 14 from 12 balls.
Mitchell Santner, New Zealand’s captain, won the toss and chose to bat first. They stuck with the same lineup, while England brought in Rehan Ahmed for Jamie Overton. England’s already through to the semi-finals. For New Zealand, this was a must-win to book their spot in the last four. Now that they’ve lost, they have to wait and see what happens in the Pakistan vs Sri Lanka match.
New Zealand (Playing XI): Tim Seifert (wicketkeeper), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner (captain), Cole McConchie, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson
England (Playing XI): Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Harry Brook (captain), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid
Brief Scores:
New Zealand: 159/7 in 20 overs (Glenn Phillips 39, Tim Seifert 35; Will Jacks 2/23)
England: 161/6 in 19.3 overs (Will Jacks 32 not out; Rachin Ravindra 3/19).
