England reached the T20 World Cup semi-finals with a thrilling two-wicket win over Pakistan in Pallekele, sealed by Jofra Archer’s decisive first-ball boundary through midwicket.
Harry Brook starred with a 50-ball maiden T20I century, becoming the third English batter to score centuries across formats, hitting a six over cover and a four through long-off.
Despite Brook’s heroics, England struggled late, scoring only six runs from 12 legal deliveries and losing three wickets with victory nearly in sight.
Pakistan fought back with key breakthroughs, including Usman Tariq’s early wicket and Mohammad Nawaz stumping Jamie Overton, keeping the chase tense until the final deliveries.
Earlier, Pakistan posted 165 for eight, with Sahibzada Farhan contributing but lacking support as England bowlers Overton and Dawson removed experienced batters Babar Azam and Fakhar Zaman.
England’s win highlighted their resilience despite uneven form in the tournament, with Will Jacks continuing to provide crucial all-round contributions for his side.
The victory ensured England’s fifth consecutive semi-final appearance in the Men’s T20 World Cup, even as they have yet to deliver their most dominant performance.
Below are some social media reactions:
While responding to the match, former Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez wrote, “Tactical errors caused team Pakistan not in this match but whole tournament.”
While praising Shaheen Afridi, former captain Mohammad Yousuf said that the eagle has finally silenced the critics with exceptional composure.
Renowned Indian journalist Vikrant Gupta criticized Salman Agha for his poor captaincy, saying, “Just like the India game, Salman Agha was poor with his captaincy.”
Stats analyst Azeem Siddiqui shared stats of Saim Ayub as an opening batter, comparing him with Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan, and Ahmed Shahzad.