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| Second Twenty20, Ageas Bowl, Southampton |
| Australia 157-7 (20 overs): Finch 40 (33), Stoinis 35 (26); Jordan 2-40 |
| England 158-4 (18.5 overs): Butler * 77 (54), Malan 42 (32) |
| England win by six wickets |
| Scorekeeper |
Jos Buttler led England to a six-wicket victory over Australia in the second Twenty20 international to clinch the three-game series.
Buttler hit for his 77 of 54 balls as the hosts reached their goal of 158 with seven balls remaining.
After the loss of Jonny Bairstow, who hit his own window in the third over, Buttler patiently batted 87 with Dawid Malan.
Malan fell by 42, and Tom Banton and Eoin Morgan continued to collapse 3-29, but the insured Buttler held firm.
With 18 needed of the final two overs, Moeen Ali hit 10 of two balls before Buttler sealed the victory with six huge.
A brilliant start with the England ball had seen Australia fall to 3-2 and 30-3, before the tourists reached their total.
After snatching victory in the first game of Friday’s series, England now lead 2-0 with only the final match on Tuesday to come.
Brilliant Buttler ensures no repeat
In the first game of the series, Australia was sailing to victory before a late collapse saw England win.
Here, when Malan dug into the slog sweep at the end of a stunning punch, Banton leapt into the deep square leg and Morgan hit for more cover, a similar twist was possible.
However, Buttler provided what Australia lacked: a calm head to watch the game at home.
He wasn’t his usual attacking self for much of the innings. Although the right wing effectively found limits with characteristic reverse sweeps, England only took 44 of the first six overs of their pursuit.
Instead, he matured with Malan and found the limit when necessary. A blow back through the decks after the loss of Banton eased the pressure.
Buttler’s presence as a set hitter allowed Moeen to attack the penultimate over and hit Adam Zampa for six over extra coverage before adding a four in the same region of the next ball.
Australia captain Aaron Finch’s bid to pitch his Zampa pitcher proved decisive. Buttler emphatically tossed him to the ground and into the stands to end the game.
Bowlers deliver for England
The victory sees England claim a fifth victory in the T20 series of their last six; the other was the series tied against Pakistan last month.
In that time, they have regularly impressed with the bat, but their bowling alley has at times been criticized. They have often battled for the grounds in the first six overs of a match.
This time, Jofra Archer eliminated David Warner with the third ball (Warner made a quick upward pitch to the wicketkeeper) and Mark Wood found Alex Carey’s advantage in the next over.
England’s average speed in those first two overs was 90.6 mph – England’s two fastest opening overs in a T20 – as Archer and Wood produced an excellent opening spell.
Captain Morgan ran out of Steve Smith for 10 with a direct hit of extra coverage, meaning Australia was 39-3 after six overs. It was the fewest runs England had conceded in the power game in their final 13 T20s.
Finch and Marcus Stoinis posted 49 but England continued to take ground at crucial moments. Finch played Jordan in 40, Stoinis departed for 35 when he beat Adil Rashid and Glenn Maxwell became Jordan’s second victim in the penultimate after starting to find his rank.
The only downside to the bowling effort was that Archer’s final cost 18. He shot three wide and was beaten to six by Pat Cummins as Australia achieved a score that had seen past them.
Still, Buttler made sure it wasn’t enough.
‘Buttler one of the best in the world’ – reaction
England Captain Eoin Morgan: “When Jos Buttler is the way he is, he really is one of the best players in the world. I thought Australia played very well today and played very well, but there are some hitters in the world who can take your game away from you. And they always seem to chase after you. the total, and Jos is one of those players.
“Jofra set the tone. He’s as fast and as good as I’ve seen him bowling all summer.”
Australia Captain Aaron Finch: “I thought we had a scoreboard that we could defend. We needed some things to do well. Jos is a world-class player and if you don’t get the guy who’s starting, you won’t win the game.
“It doesn’t matter in what format or anywhere in the world, he’s a great player.”
Former England captain Michael Vaughan: “This England team is ruthless, they just know how to win cricket matches.”
