#England Vs #Australia T20I series had started on an exciting note. The first encounter between the two old horses was full of drama as both the teams were under pressure at some of the time in the whole match. But it was England who held their nerve to win the first encounter at Southampton yesterday.
England Vs Australia – T20I Series 2020 1st T20 International Match Preview
England Vs Australia 1st T20I Highlights – England’s 1st Innings –
The Aussies had won the toss and they had invited the home team to bat first in this 1st encounter. England started well in their innings, Jos Buttler opened the innings for the hosts and he was brutal from the start.
It looked like Buttler will take this match single-handedly. But Buttler needed some support from the other end. Despite a good start, the hosts weren’t ahead of Australia in the game because Johnny Bairstow didn’t get many deliveries to play before he was out for just 8 runs.
Tom Banton, who played well in the series against Pakistan at the opening position was asked to bat in the middle order. He came in next to support Buttler at the crease. Banton found it tough to bat in the middle but Jos went well at the end.
Finally, Australia picked up Jos Buttler once England crossed their fifty run mark. It was Ashton Agar who ended the onslaught and picked up Buttler for 44 runs. The middle-order again struggled to make a mark just their last game against Pakistan.
It was Dawid Malan who held the innings together when other batters like Tom Banton, Eoin Morgan, Moeen Ali and Tom Curran fell on the single-digit scores. Australia found themselves back when they picked these wickets at a quick pace.
But Malan didn’t leave the field till he fought. He played a big knock which helped England to put up a defendable score for their bowlers. The southpaw showed his class yet again after he scored a match-winning 54 runs against Pakistan. Malan’s knock was full of placement and timing on a deck which was two-faced. He changed gears when he wanted to, Malan found the gaps and also played big shots to the spinners of Australia.
Due to the good start from Jos Buttler and a great knock from Dawid Malan, England posted a decent total on their scoreboard. The hosts could have scored more, but the wickets in the middle didn’t give them the momentum.
Dawid Malan was the last man to dismissed for 66 runs. At the end of their quota of 20 overs, England had managed to score 162 runs for the loss of seven wickets. Australia bowlers survived the scare of Buttler and they also managed to pick up the middle order of England quickly.
The Australian bowlers mixed the pace which caused the downfall of the batsmen from England. Only Dawid Malan could read their deliveries but the other batters from England failed to do so.
Kane Richardson was the pick of the bowlers from the Australian camp. He just gave away 13 runs and picked up 2 wickets. Along with him, Glenn Maxwell and Ashton Agar also picked up 2 wickets each, and Pat Cummins took 1 wicket to his name.
England Vs Australia 1st T20I Highlights – Australia’s Run Chase –
The target of 163 runs was not a big one for the visitors. The Australia openers have a wonderful start of 98 runs from just 66 balls while they chased this modest score.
David Warner smashed a half-century to his name. He scored 58 runs. Warner’s opening partner skipper Aaron Finch scored 46 runs in this stand. But the wicket of the Australian skipper turned the match towards England.
After Finch, Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell were dismissed in quick succession. Then England got the big fish. The wicket of David Warner was the one the hosts were waiting for. Jofra Archer created that magic and gave a big hope to England to clinch the first T20I.
Australia was in the back foot despite they had a great start of 98 runs. The middle-order succumbed to the pressure created by the England bowlers. Alex Carey and Ashton Agar were also out quickly which put more pressure on the visiting team.
Australia lost 6 wickets for 148 runs on the board, then it was Marcus Stoinis who took his team close with to the total set by England. Stoinis played an unbeaten knock of 23 runs. But he couldn’t finish the game from that close position.
Australia scored 160 runs and fell short by two in the end. England bowlers bowled wonderfully. It is not easy to defend a small total as the England bowlers did. The trio of Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, and Adil Rashid turned the script around for England.
Archer and Rashid picked up two wickets each to their names. While Mark Wood took 1 wicket to his name as England won the first T20I encounter by just 2 runs and they go 1-0 up in the three-match T20I series.
Dawid Malan was named the man of the match for his outstanding knock of 66 runs. Malan held England’s innings together when it mattered the most. He stepped up his performance when the others failed to deliver.
The second match of this three-match T20I series will be played on Sunday 6th September 2020 at Southampton.
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