England qualified for the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026 after defeating Pakistan by eight wickets in a tense encounter at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium.
Captain Harry Brook was the star performer for his side, scoring a match-winning 100 runs off 50 balls, including 10 fours and four sixes, helping his team secure a semi-final spot.
Brook’s record-breaking Night Out
Harry Brook’s 100 against Pakistan became the first century by a captain at the men’s T20 World Cup, surpassing Chris Gayle’s previous highest score of 98 against India in 2010.
Brook became the first England captain to score a hundred in all men’s T20Is, breaking Eoin Morgan’s previous highest score of 91 achieved against New Zealand in 2019.
Brook became the first batter to score a hundred against Pakistan at the men’s T20 World Cups, surpassing Shakib Al Hasan’s previous best of 84 made at Pallekele in 2012.
The 50 balls Brook faced to reach his hundred were the joint-second fastest in men’s T20 World Cup history, after Chris Gayle’s 47-ball century against England in 2016.
Harry Brook joined Dawid Malan and Jos Buttler as the only England men to score a hundred in all three international cricket formats.
England have reached the semi-finals or beyond in five consecutive men’s T20 World Cup editions, surpassing Pakistan and Sri Lanka, who achieved four successive semi-finals.
Shaheen Afridi has taken 18 wickets in powerplay overs at men’s T20 World Cups, the most by any bowler, while totalling 60 wickets in the first six overs across all men’s T20Is.
