England see off Pakistan to secure T20 World Cup title

England (138-5, 19 overs) (Ben Stokes 53*; Haris Rauf 2-23) beat Pakistan (137-8, 20 overs) (Shan Masood 38; Sam Curran 3-12) by five wickets. Scorecard here.

The forecasters got it wrong and England got it right, as the predicted downpour held off and it was Jos Buttler’s side who reigned in Melbourne. Inevitably it was Ben Stokes, a man who always manages to crowbar his way into a big occasion, who produced the decisive innings to lead his country to victory by five wickets, and to a second T20 World Cup title.

Of course it had been Stokes, when England last reached a T20 World Cup final in 2016, who bowled the catastrophic final over that cost his side the title. And it was Stokes, six years later, who won his side this one.

England’s Test captain is an irredeemable drama magnet, and this was a hell of a time to score a first international T20 half-century. Pakistan batted poorly but bowled magnificently, took the early wickets they needed, and the game was building towards a thrillingly tense conclusion when, in what first appeared a moment of celebration, their chances of victory suddenly disappeared.

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It can be hard sometimes to pinpoint the turning point in a game, but not here. After being held to a low total, Pakistan’s attempt to defend it was brilliantly spirited and often just brilliant – Naseem Shah terrorised England’s batters with a remarkable spell of fast bowling that ended scandalously unrewarded.

Then midway through the 13th over of England’s innings Harry Brook slapped the ball to long off, where Shaheen Afridi took a fine catch. But instead of sprinting away in celebration the 22-year-old, only just back from a knee ligament injury, called for help. He hobbled off the pitch, and it was a surprise to see him return apparently untroubled and attempt to push himself through one more over. It lasted one ball, and this time when he limped off there would be no return.

Whatever Stokes was feeling as Iftikhar Ahmed prepared to complete the over it was not sympathy. He attacked remorselessly, scored a four and a six, and when Moeen Ali hit the first two balls of the next over, bowled by Mohammad Wasim, to the boundary England had scored 18 off four balls and the game had tilted irreversibly in their favour.

Stokes was ice cool as the night ended, but had been anything but at the start. His opening delivery was a no-ball and his second a wide, and when Chris Woakes bowled the following over he also started with a wide. At this point the pressure of the occasion seemed to be overwhelming everyone involved.

The fact that they came in this maelstrom makes the performances of Adil Rashid and Sam Curran all the more remarkable. Curran’s four overs, which included two at the death of Pakistan’s innings, brought three wickets and just 12 runs; Rashid’s two wickets and 22 runs, and included a wicket maiden in the 12th over of a World Cup final.

Other than the single over when Shan Masood assaulted the bowling of Liam Livingstone, Pakistan failed to show consistent aggression. And when they felt they had no choice but to do so, someone tended to get out.

The result was a diminutive total, the sort that, particularly against a side with as much batting depth as England, only the very greatest bowling attack could possibly defend. And perhaps, in the end, they were just a slip away.

- Guardian