England registered another narrow win in a heart-enthralling encounter. The victory, which was the second in a row for the hosts, helped them take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series. Individual batting brilliance, combined with courageous bowling performances, helped the team narrowly defeat Australia.
The match took an incredible amount of twists and turns and was good enough to keep the fans at the edge of their seats all the time. Everyone got to see some fine moments throughout both the innings, which played a crucial role in the outcome of the game. It’s time for us to have a look at the top 3 talking points from England’s fine win over Australia.
3. Moeen Ali proved his worth with the bat
England were in a spot of bother when they were reduced to 54/4 while batting first. The Australian bowlers seemed to be in total control of the game when Moeen Ali, who came in to bat at No. 6, joined Dawin Malan. The left-hander showed superbly good resistance with the bat. He first tried to stabilize the innings with brilliant strokes to rotate the strike at regular intervals.
Once he was settled, he went for the big shots immediately. His 44-run innings consisted of four fours and a couple of sixes. His 92-run stand with Malan proved to be pretty crucial for England to win the game.
2. Sam Curran’s fantastic spell of bowling didn’t let Australia stand a chance
Sam Curran was undoubtedly the pick of the bowlers on his side. The 24-year-old did a fantastic job to restrict the Australians with brilliantly planned lines and lengths. His amazing spell of 3/25 in 4 overs played a crucial role in England taking the driver’s seat in the game. The pacer bowled the tough overs, and his economical bowling towards the death was absolutely remarkable.
He bagged wickets of Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis and Tim David, each of whom had the ability to change the game by themselves. His brilliance with the ball was what England banked upon to win the match in the end.
1. David Malan won it for England with a fine innings
England’s batting was jolted early in the powerplay when both openers were sent back to the pavilion. The batters who had come in after the early wickets, too, couldn’t find their rhythm. It was. David Malan alone, who stood firm at one end and kept steering the inning and finding the big shot. The left-hander brilliantly resisted the tough spells and didn’t throw his wicket away.
Even when England’s batting order seemed to crumble totally, Malan never let the momentum shift towards the opposition. He found some able support from Moeen Ali, who helped the flow of runs to continue. Malan smashed a brilliant half-century at a great strike rate and went on to bat until the last over. Had it not been for his brilliant 49-ball 82, England would never have been able to post a decent total on the board and hence win the match.