England praised for ‘almost perfect’ win over West Indies as T20 World Cup title defence kicks into gear
England may have made a somewhat shaky start to their T20 World Cup title defence in the group stages but look to have sparked into life following their first Super 8 game, with a convincing win over co-host nation West Indies.
In fact, they were so impressive in the opening game of the divisive phase that their performance was labelled as near perfection by ex-England bowler Steven Finn.
Speaking on BBC’s Test Match Special coverage, Finn said simply, “England turned up – the England that everyone has enjoyed watching over the last few years”, claiming that, “barring a couple of overs with the ball, this was almost a perfect performance”.
The former fast bowler went on to insist that this could be a good opportunity for them “to set a marker down” for the rest of the tournament. The star of the show was undeniably Phil Salt – exhibit A:
Salt, who was rightly awarded Player of the Match after opening the batting with 87 from 47 balls not out, produced a commanding display to give England a strong advantage from the off, including a staggering run of 30 runs in just one over.
Only more quality followed him as Johnny Bairstow stepped up to go unbeaten for 48 from 26 and seal the win over the heavy favourites by 180-4 with 15 balls to spare.
Heaping further praise on the national team set-up, including former Windies captain Kieron Pollard whose work as the new England batting coach is clearly working, Finn added: “They batted with power and bowled with skill.
“They knew that when they got the bat in hand, once they got the momentum, they could take advantage of it.”
England now find themselves in a very strong position to qualify for the semi-finals, with South Africa and the other joint-host USA left to play in this stage.
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The South Africans only managed a narrow victory over America on the same day, meaning that England seemingly boast the best form in their Super 8 group as they look to take control of the top two.
Can the reigning T20 World Cup Champions do it two years in a row?
With the Vitality T20 Blast also underway, The Hundred set to kick off next month and the live music lineup for the likes of the Manchester games already out, it’s going to be a summer full of cricket.
You can find out everything you need to know about Manchester Originals fixtures and the rest of this year’s tournament down below.
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Featured Image — Phil Salt/England Cricket (via Instagram)