Pakistan dream stay alive in T20 World Cup 2026 as Will Jacks, Rehan Ahmed script stunning win over New Zealand
Will Jacks and Rehan Ahmed's great comeback helps England defeat New Zealand by four wickets in T20 World Cup 2026.
England defeat New Zealand by 4 wickets
On Friday, February 27, England team dominated New Zealand and defeated them by 4 wickets in the T20 World Cup 2026 at the R Premadasa Stadium, Colombo.
Star England players Will Jacks and Rehan Ahmed's great comeback helped their team defeat New Zealand by four wickets in the Super 8 clash. With this victory, Pakistan still have a chance to qualify for the knockout games.
England (Playing XI):
Philip Salt, Jos Buttler(w), Harry Brook(c), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid
New Zealand (Playing XI):
Tim Seifert(w), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner(c), Cole McConchie, Matt Henry, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson
Tim Seifert and Finn Allen's solid start
New Zealand won the toss and decided to bat first. While batting, the New Zealand opening pair, Tim Seifert and Finn Allen, gave a good start to the team as they played some impressive shots at the beginning and led the team to a positive powerplay. Seifert played a brilliant innings for New Zealand as he scored 35 runs off 25 balls, including three fours and two sixes. Allen also showcased a great batting performance for his team and scored 29 runs off 19 balls including three big sixes.
Glenn Phillips powers New Zealand to 159 runs
Moving on, all-rounders Glenn Phillips and Rachin Ravindra took to the charge to added runs on the board. Rachin scored only 11 runs. However, Phillips stood on the crease like a warrior and became a trouble for the England bowling-attack as he played an innings of 39 runs, including four boundaries and one six. Speaking about other players, they failed to added runs on the board and New Zealand only scored 159 runs for seven wickets loss.
England spinners play a crucial role with the bowl
For England, their spinners played a crucial role, as the star players Adil Rashid and Will Jacks took two important wickets for the team. Rashid dismissed Tim Seifert and Mark Chapman. Meanwhile, Jacks dismissed Finn Allen and Glenn Phillips. Rehan Ahmed was the key player for his team as he showcased his epic performance with both bat and ball. While bowling, he dismissed Rachin Ravindra and Cole McConchie. Liam Dawson also took the important wicket of Daryl Mitchell.
England's batting performance
Speaking about England's batting performance as they got a poor start as their star opening pair, Philip Salt and Jos Buttler were sent early to the dressing room by New Zealand's bowling attack. Meanwhile, the skipper, Harry Brook took things into his hands and scored 26 runs off 24 balls, including three fours and a six.
After that, Jacob Bethell and Tom Banton also added some important runs on the board and gave a little push to the team towards the target. All-rounder Sam Curran played a valuable innings of 24 runs off 22 balls for his team.
Will Jacks and Rehan Ahmed's heroics for England
The real show began after that when the star players Will Jacks and Rehan Ahmed chased a mammoth target for their team, smashing some brilliant boundaries off Glenn Phillips and Mitchell Santner. They played a crucial role for their team and helped them to win by four wickets.
New Zealand's struggle with the ball
New Zealand bowlers gave an impressive fight. All-rounder Rachin Ravindra helped his team by clinching three wickets. Speaking about the other players, Glenn Phillips, Lockie Ferguson and Matt Henry took one wicket each for their team. But they still lose this important match.
How England's victory benefits Pakistan
The team that was more happier with England's victory was Pakistan because they were hoping for an England win. If New Zealand had won this match, there would have been an exit for Pakistan from the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026.
Now, New Zealand is stuck with 3 points only. If Pakistan want to qualify for the semi-final of the tournament, they have to defeat Sri Lanka in their upcoming game with a big margin. After that, whichever side has a better Net Run Rate will be qualify for the knockout games.
For breaking news and live news updates, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter and Instagram. Read more on Latest India News on India.com.