England’s Buttler and Hales crush India to book final spot
Astonishing batting from England openers Jos Buttler and Alex Hales led England to a brutal, 10-wicket victory against India in their T20 World Cup semifinal at the Adelaide Oval yesterday.
Chasing India’s competitive total of 168-6 Buttler and Hales delivered England’s highest partnership for any wicket at a T20 World Cup with a display of memorable stroke-play to seal a crushing victory with an eyewatering four overs to spare and a place in the final against Pakistan at the MCG on Sunday as England finished on 170-0 in just 16 overs.
Buttler finished the match with a straight six against seamer Mohammad Shami to end on 80 not out from just 49 balls with nine fours and three sixes whiles Hales, who made much of the early running, finished unbeaten on 86 from just 47 balls with four fours and seven sixes.
England captain, Buttler, went through his full array of shots with the match all but won, ramping and driving boundaries to every part of the ground.
Earlier, equally wonderful ballstriking from Pandya and a more measured half-century from Virat Kohli helped India score 68 from the final five overs of their innings having been well contained by a disciplined England attack to reach 100-3 after 15 overs.
Pandya smashed 63 from only 33 balls including four fours and five sixes to transform the innings and give India belief that they could set up a dream final against arch-rivals Pakistan.
Kohli’s 50 from 40 balls was the anchor innings India required in the face of smart bowling from England’s attack which restricted them just 62-2 in the first 10 overs.
KL Rahul (5) perished in the second over to a lifter from Chris Woakes which caught the edge and flew to ‘keeper Jos Buttler and Rohit Sharma’s patient 27 from 28 balls (4x4) ended with a miscued drive against Chris Jordan which was well caught by a diving Sam Curran.
Danger man Suryakumar Yadav struggled, by his standards, to 14 off 10 balls with a four and a six before hitting legspinner Adil Rashid ‘inside out’ to Phil Salt sweeping on the cover boundary.
Pandya smashed Curran for six over cover in the 17th over and then transformed the innings with two more maximums against Jordan in the 18th, pulling a short ball over deep midwicket and then whipping a full-length delivery off his pads over deep square leg.
Kohli’s fine innings came to an end in the same over when he sliced a wide yorker to Rashid at short third man to depart for 50 from 40 balls with four fours and a glorious straight six against Chris Woakes inside the Power Play.
Rishabh Pant (6) sacrificed his wicket to a run out in the final over in order to get Pandya back on strike for the final three deliveries and the allrounder responded by clubbing Jordan (4-0-43-3) for a six and a four before stepping on his stumps attempting hit another boundary off the final ball of the innings.
But it was England’s night and they now have the chance to add the T20 World Cup to the 50-over title they won on home soil in 2019.