Series Triumph for England Powered by Collective Effort

England secured a 2-0 series victory over Pakistan and prepared for the T20 World Cup in style, cruising to a comfortable seven-wicket win in the fourth T20I at The Oval in London.

Chasing a modest target of 159, openers Jos Buttler (39 off 21) and Phil Salt (45 off 24) started strongly, adding 78 runs in the PowerPlay and building an 82-run opening partnership. Haris Rauf broke through with the wicket of Salt, later dismissing Buttler and Will Jacks in successive overs, but England reached the target with 27 balls to spare, thanks to Jonny Bairstow and Harry Brook’s unbeaten partnership.

Bairstow scored 28 off 16 balls, including a boundary and three sixes, while Rauf, the only bowler to make an impact for Pakistan, finished with figures of 3 for 38.

Pakistan’s downfall came down to their inability to score runs once again. Despite a quick 59-run opening stand between Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan, Pakistan collapsed from 59/0 to 86/5 after Babar’s dismissal, with Adil Rashid leading the collapse on both sides of a brief rain break.

Series Win for England ahead of World cup

Babar highlighted the need for more runs from Pakistan’s middle-order. However, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, and Azam Khan all fell in the space of nine deliveries without making significant contributions. Shadab and Azam returned with ducks.

Usman Khan (38) and Iftikhar Ahmed (21) added 40 runs for the sixth wicket, setting Pakistan up for 157 all out. However, as felt at the change of innings, the total wasn’t enough in the end.

England will be pleased with the performances of Jofra Archer, playing his first matches since March 2023, and Mark Wood (2/35), featuring in his first white-ball match for England since the ODI World Cup in India. Rashid’s 2 for 27, including the key wickets of Rizwan and Shadab, earned him the Player of the Match award, while Liam Livingstone (2 for 17) also impressed.

Pakistan 157 all out in 19.5 overs (Usman 38, Babar 36; Livingstone 2-17, Rashid 2-27, Wood 2-35) lost to England 158/3 (Salt 45, Buttler 39; Rauf 3-38) by 7 wickets.