ENG vs NZ, T20 World Cup 2022: The ongoing multi-nation cricketing event has been nothing short of a spectacle. Almost every game has been a close contest which adds to the magnitude of the tournament. Other than Afghanistan and the Netherlands, every team is alive and the tournament has spiced up as it hits the business end. In a high-octane clash that was played between Kane Williamson and Jos Buttler's men, England managed to edge over New Zealand by a margin of 20 runs.
England won the toss and chose to bat first. On a slow Brisbane surface, Buttler and Alex Hales showed glimpses of England's power-hitting capabilities. Skipper Buttler put on a stellar show as he produced a magnificent innings of 73 off 47 deliveries. The skipper scored a strike rate of 155.32 and hit 7 boundaries and 2 sixes. On the other hand, Hales brought his best to the table and scored 52 off 40 deliveries. Livingstone too played a short cameo as he scored 20 off 14 deliveries. It was Lockie Ferguson's double-wicket spell and Santner's economical spell that restricted England to 179.
With the wicket playing tricks, 160 has always been a par score for teams to chase. New Zealand had their jobs cut out for them. Both Conway and Allen had a rather dismal outing and were hunted down by the pair of Sam Curran and Chris Woakes. Skipper Williamson and Glenn Phillips made sure that they keep their team alive. Williamson played second fiddle to Phillips and scored 40 off 40 deliveries. On the other Phillips, who has been in a sensational touch lately gave a tiny scare to England. Phillips scored a swashbuckling 62 off 36 deliveries. Both Chris Woakes and Sam Curran claimed 2 wickets each and deferred New Zealand's chance of qualification for the semis. England won the match by 20 runs and they remain alive.
England XI: Jos Buttler (c & wk), Alex Hales, Dawid Malan, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood
New Zealand XI: Finn Allen, Devon Conway (wk), Kane Williamson (c), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult
