Gus Atkinson stars on T20 debut as England batter New Zealand
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onny Bairstow and Harry Brook put New Zealand’s bowlers to the sword, earlier than debutant Gus Atkinson took 4 wickets as England produced one other dominant show to win the Second T20 at Old Trafford by 95 runs.
Just 48 hours after a comfortable seven-wicket victory in Durham, Jos Buttler’s aspect had been once more in management all through, Atkinson claiming four-for-20, the perfect ever figures by an Englishman on T20I bow, because the vacationers had been rolled for 103 inside simply 14 overs.
Earlier, Bairstow had batted by the innings to complete unbeaten on 86 from 60 balls, his first half-century in white-ball cricket since final 12 months’s horror leg-break, as England posted 198 for 4, whereas one other masterful innings from Brook strengthened a Cricket World Cup case that’s absolutely changing into inconceivable to disregard.
Brook was the shock omission from the provisional 15-man squad named final month for the autumn’s 50-over World Cup defence in India, however a finalised group doesn’t must be submitted till late-September and the 24-year-old may hardly be doing extra to pressure a rethink.
Having scored the quickest century ever within the Hundred final week, after which a fast unbeaten 43 within the collection opener at Durham on Wednesday, Brook continued his stellar type, lifting Ish Sodhi over additional cowl for successive sixes to kickstart one other domineering knock of 67 from simply 36 deliveries.
Having arrived on the crease after Dawid Malan’s dismissal to a intelligent piece of bowling from Mitch Santner for a four-ball duck, Brook joined Bairstow in a brutal partnership of 131 by the center overs, the best in T20Is at Old Trafford.
From 81 for 2 after 11 overs on what initially regarded a tough pitch, the pair added precisely 100 runs within the subsequent seven earlier than Brook’s departure and a few high-quality dying bowling from the spectacular Adam Milne stored England simply shy of the 200-mark. Milne was excellent with out reward in his nought-for-23, swinging the ball up high and leaking simply 4 runs from the penultimate over, however each different Kiwi bowler went across the park in one other assault that can do little to spice up confidence forward of the 2 sides’ assembly within the World Cup opener subsequent month.
Tim Southee was the costliest of the lot and having taken the Black Caps skipper aside with three successive boundaries to maneuver into the seventies, Bairstow regarded nicely on track to develop into solely the fifth England participant to register centuries in all three codecs.
In the tip, he fell nicely quick, starved of the strike late on, however a damaging show that includes a dozen boundaries marked a welcome indicator of white-ball type for a participant who might be key to England’s hopes in India, however who has had treasured little alternative to play red-ball cricket since returning to health simply in time for the Ashes.
Already fast-tracked into the doubtless World Cup squad on account of his blistering tempo, Surrey seamer Atkinson took simply 4 balls to say the important thing wicket of Devon Conway as his first in worldwide cricket, earlier than Sam Curran’s slower ball did for Finn Allen solely three deliveries later to go away the guests eight for 2 contained in the powerplay, a place from which they by no means threatened.
The first six wickets every fell to completely different bowlers, together with Brydon Carse, who picked up the place he left off at on T20 debut at Durham to have the damaging Daryl Mitchell caught behind with out scoring.
Moeen Ali was the one England bowler to complete the evening wicketless as Buttler made full use of his choices, however the all-rounder was within the sport at slip to take an excellent catch to make Milne, reverse-sweeping, Adil Rashid’s second sufferer.
Tim Seifert high scored for New Zealand with 39 however fell to Atkinson subsequent ball together with his staff nonetheless greater than 100 runs quick, and the 25-year-old made quick work of mopping up the tail, claiming the ultimate two wickets in successive balls.