2022 T20 World Cup thread

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

First topic message reminder :

Marsh put down, Aus right on the edge

Might have been the turning point of this one

[GSC]

Similar to yesterday, fairly passive approach from the team batting first, then brutalised by the team batting second

[VTR]

Its as if Buttler has settled to play the anchor role now...

He is the greatest white ball anchor in the world - it is weird to call him an "anchor" but that is the role he plays opening in t20s!

This is brutal. Just brutal from England.

More shots of sad Kohli and Indian supporters please director

The petulance is hilarious, refusing to throw back the ball etc. A truly embarrassing, ungracious team in defeat

[JDizzle]

Already some cat and mouse with Buttler walking down and now Pant up to the stumps.

Made me chuckle how the commentator called that 'mind games'. Buttler comes down to negate the swing, keeper comes up to stop him. Happens in 1000's of village cricket games all summer, every year, but in a WC semi-final, it is 'mind games'.

Just need the Pant to keep his helmet on when he goes back to complete the village experience.

5 runs off the helmet wouldn't go amiss if we're going village

An all run 4. We really are heading into village territory here.

Dropped catch and palmed over for four from about 20 yards away. Excellent.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Give them 60 more so we can carry on watching this

[GSC]

And now a drop

[Mind the windows Tino.]

The petulance is hilarious, refusing to throw back the ball etc. A truly embarrassing, ungracious team in defeat

They've just thrown a dropped catch for 4.

It is just too funny.

[Pal Joey]

Completely flawless batting from Hales and Butter. Both proper 360 degree players.

Like the way Morgan is giving Bhogle a lesson in the tactical approach England have taken in this match. I don't think he nor the Indians were expecting this outcome. The air has gone out of majority of this crowd too.

Would you like a window or an aisle seat, Sir?

[Duty281]

Should have batted first. Could have been 240 and they'd both make centuries!

Let's get Alex Lees on the pitch to celebrate.

[eirebilly_01]

I never expected this, this is the best batting of this tournament by any team. Simply stunning to watch. Making this track look like a par score was 200...

India, fully blown away.

[GSC]

Nice having an injury replacement who whacks 80 off 40 in a WC semi final

[Mind the windows Tino.]

Just 2 off that over. Pathetic. Someone needs to have a word with Buttler and Hales.

[alfie]

Unfortunately Hales can't get a century now as Jos has hogged the strike this last few balls

He can settle for red ink , maybe...

Only problem with this display is the rest of the order will be short of match practice come Sunday.

[JDizzle]

Genuinely nothing better than watching Jos shuffle across his stumps and open up and you just know he is going to try and hammer it. You can see it coming but you can’t stop it.

[GSC]

And Buttler finishes it with 6

Might be England's greatest T20 performance ever

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Nice having an injury replacement who whacks 80 off 40 in a WC semi final

I am still petitioning for the ICC to allow us to play the Lions in these tournaments

[Duty281]

Sensational. One of England's greatest ever limited-overs wins. Stupendous from Buttler and Hales. Not a lot more to say.

Pakistan v England will hopefully be a great final, if the weather allows. Both teams that started a bit slow but are displaying the virtue of peaking at the right time.

What a win.

[eirebilly_01]

Smashed, absolutely smashed India. Seriously do not believe i watched that...

[VTR]

And Buttler finishes it with 6

Might be England's greatest T20 performance ever

It's one of the best performances by an England team in any World Cup knockout game regardless of the sport or format

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Just cements Buttler's standing as England's best ever white ball bat, and he's amongst the pantheon of greats in the world game too

[Duty281]

And Buttler finishes it with 6

Might be England's greatest T20 performance ever

It's one of the best performances by an England team in any World Cup knockout game regardless of the sport or format

Somewhat reminiscent of the way England destroyed the All Blacks in the 2019 RWC.

[dummy_half]

Completely crushing victory.

[alfie]

Ten wickets , four overs to spare...I think they call that "emphatic".

India don't know what hit them . A lot of their fans off home early.

Buttler had a great day , handling his (late changed) attack , and then batting. And Hales paid the selectors back for their faith.

Wonder if Morgan will present him with his PoTM award

[Soul Requiem]

That's one of the all time great T20 partnerships, they were so far ahead of the game they didn't even need to bother accelerating.

[Duty281]

https://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/stats/index.html?class=3;filter=advanced;orderby=fow_score;template=results;trophy=89;type=fow;view=innings

It was also the highest ever partnership in the history of the T20 World Cup.

[eirebilly_01]

I think this loss will see a few of the greats from this India side retiring as well...

[kingraf]

Absolute demolition job. Fair play.

Interesting to see both England and Pakistan lost to minnows in this tournament. Seems to support my general feel that our loss to Netherlands is less something to be ashamed of, and more the new reality that these 9-16th ranked sides are good enough to win the odd game now.

As for India, they'll probably regret their start. 36-40 odd in the first six overs isn't going to do you any good. They did win four out of five in the group stages, but it took a freak Kohli death striking performance to beat Pakistan, then a combination of rain and/or fake fielding not being punished to vanquish Bangladesh, so they've not been particularly convincing the whole tournament. Eventually their languid start got punished.

Hard to see past England on Sunday, but Shaheen Afridi is a match winner unlike any other, and he could easily have England two down in the first six balls. Should be a cracking final

[JDizzle]

Sri Lanka walloping England by 10 wickets in the QFs of the 2011 WC is the most similar game I can remember. Just one side play outdated cricket with the bat getting to what they hoped was par, and just having it blown out of the water by a team playing adventurous and exciting cricket.

[Soul Requiem]

India have been stuck in the past for a few years now. I always think of the group game in 2019; chasing 338 to win and knock England out they were far too conservative for the first 30 overs.

You cannot win these white ball tournaments playing that way any more.

[alfie]

With both England and Pakistan apparently peaking at the right time , the final could be a cracker...

BUT : that blasted weather forecast refuses to change : 95% chance of rain both days ; heavy Sunday , showers early and afternoon Monday ; possible thunderstorms. Looks a strong chance the final will be severely impacted , if not completely washed away.

Lived mostly here for decades now and I have never seen a spring like this before

[GSC]

Never easy losing a semi final, especially being tonked, but some of the attitude and tantrums were a bit much

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

India have been stuck in the past for a few years now. I always think of the group game in 2019; chasing 338 to win and knock England out they were far too conservative for the first 30 overs.

You cannot win these white ball tournaments playing that way any more.

Nope - and this was reminiscent of the 2019 WC semi final win for England as Duty said earlier. Clear evidence of their style of play/mentality, coming through biggest on the stage in a chase of an par-ish total.

This T20 side since the Morgan white ball revolution deserves a World Cup win. Hopefully they can get it done, unlike in Eden Gardens in 2016

[Duty281]

With both England and Pakistan apparently peaking at the right time , the final could be a cracker...

BUT : that blasted weather forecast refuses to change : 95% chance of rain both days ; heavy Sunday , showers early and afternoon Monday ; possible thunderstorms. Looks a strong chance the final will be severely impacted , if not completely washed away.

Lived mostly here for decades now and I have never seen a spring like this before

Should do a countback and give the trophy to whoever won that seven-match epic of a series.

Weather forecast for Melbourne not looking apocalyptic on the BBC page, though the Met Office are saying plenty of rain. Just have to hope it improves.

[alfie]

Sri Lanka walloping England by 10 wickets in the QFs of the 2011 WC is the most similar game I can remember. Just one side play outdated cricket with the bat getting to what they hoped was par, and just having it blown out of the water by a team playing adventurous and exciting cricket.

I think to be fair to India , England actually bowled and fielded extremely well ; and scoring fast wasn't easy. They should have taken more risks earlier , certainly : but that 168 wasn't really that awful a score. They just got blown away by some astonishing batting from two players who have the ability to destroy any bowling attack on their day.
And of course as the blitz continued they rather lost heart and mind...that daft fielding effort that allowed an all run four was a sign...

[GSC]

Credit to Jordan for stepping in and taking some key wickets. Salt had less to do though his catch was important

[alfie]

India have been stuck in the past for a few years now. I always think of the group game in 2019; chasing 338 to win and knock England out they were far too conservative for the first 30 overs.

You cannot win these white ball tournaments playing that way any more.

Nope - and this was reminiscent of the 2019 WC semi final win for England as Duty said earlier. Clear evidence of their style of play/mentality, coming through biggest on the stage in a chase of an par-ish total.

This T20 side since the Morgan white ball revolution deserves a World Cup win. Hopefully they can get it done, unlike in Eden Gardens in 2016

Indeed. As Moeen was saying the other day : they sort of have to win another cup or two or they will feel they've rather underachieved , given the group of players they've had. Which I think is a fair summation.

Let us hope they can defeat both Pakistan and the wretched Melbourne weather this weekend

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Obviously Hales and Buttler getting deserved praise and adulation for their knocks - but do think Adil Rashid deserves a lot of praise. With the entire frontline seam attack missing, he was really needed to deliver as the banker bowler, and with short square boundaries against an Indian lineup good against spin, definitely no sure thing.

20-1 off his four overs, including one in the powerplay, and getting the key wicket of Suryakumar - sensational.

[eirebilly_01]

Yeah, Rashid was sublime today. He has been very tight during this tournament without getting wickets which was getting a bit concerning.

I also think that Buttler marshalled his bowlers very well today and really did not give the Indian batters momentum until Hardik came in and smashed but that was always going to happen.

[VTR]

And Buttler finishes it with 6

Might be England's greatest T20 performance ever

It's one of the best performances by an England team in any World Cup knockout game regardless of the sport or format

Somewhat reminiscent of the way England destroyed the All Blacks in the 2019 RWC.

Let's hope the final doesn't go the same way as that one, they didn't even turn up for it!

[alfie]

Credit can actually be shared around quite a lot : obviously the two batsmen are going to be highlighted for their record stand , but a lot of good work went into keeping India to 168 in what proved to be very good batting conditions.

As Olly and eirebilly note above , Rashid's spell was pivotal in restricting India through the middle stages (not least his removal of danger man Yadav) ; but Livingstone also played an important role thereabouts. And even if Curran and Jordan suffered at the death , they , along with Woakes and Stokes all played a part in keeping the lid on things for much of the innings. Had India made , say , 190 , I imagine their bowlers wouldn't have given up quite so early in the face of the Hales/Buttler blitz so we might have seen a much closer affair.

And yes I also think this was the most confident performance I have seen from Buttler in marshalling his bowling resources : which is even more impressive with the unfortunate loss of a key bowler in Mark Wood.

Wonder if Wood will be fit for Sunday/Monday ?

[GSC]

Sounds like it was called last night so maybe not that close if they didn't even give him a run out today pregame

[Duty281]

It's been quite a barren run for India in ICC tournaments - the last one they won was the 2013 Champions Trophy. They've been runners-up three times (WTC 2021; Champ Trophy 2017; T20 World Cup 2014), and knocked out in the semis various times, including today.

I think of the 8 biggest test nations only South Africa are currently on a longer barren run (1998 Champions Trophy). Still, there's going to be an ICC tournament every year going forward, so lots of opportunity to break the duck. Will be huge pressure on India next year, when they host the World Cup, to repeat 2011.

Oh, and for UK viewers the final will be on Channel 4 as well as Sky:

https://www.espncricinfo.com/story/eng-vs-pak-t20-world-cup-final-2022-t20-world-cup-final-england-vs-pakistan-to-be-shown-on-channel-4-in-uk-1344300

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

https://twitter.com/ethanmeldrum_/status/1590663493258448896?s=46&t=ZzIXAOJLe7qm1SYBGY_C-A

[king_carlos]

Obviously Hales and Buttler getting deserved praise and adulation for their knocks - but do think Adil Rashid deserves a lot of praise. With the entire frontline seam attack missing, he was really needed to deliver as the banker bowler, and with short square boundaries against an Indian lineup good against spin, definitely no sure thing.

20-1 off his four overs, including one in the powerplay, and getting the key wicket of Suryakumar - sensational.

Agreed. I've been concerned about Dilly since the shoulder injury but he delivered where it counted today.

In fairness to one of England's more maligned (often deservedly it should be noted) players, Chris Jordan had a good game today too. He lost that yorker for a while but it was a good performance today after the huge blow of losing Wood.

To be honest it's been a tough work week and a long day today so I only saw the score after India's innings and then the final result. It put a huge smile on my face and watching the game just now after getting home continued to do so.

It's been a terrific tournament full of ups and downs, exciting games, unexpected results. Hopefully the final continues in that vein and is an absolute cracker. As an England fan I just hope they do it. It would be a shame if this white ball unit couldn't add a World T20 title to the 2019 triumph.

[VTR]

I'm concerned about the final. They've stretched the playing time to try and fit it in, but the possibility of cramming a game into the first day, or even worse having the match held over two days has farce written all over it. A shared trophy is unsatisfactory, but an unfair final would be even more so

[Mind the windows Tino.]

I'm concerned about the final. They've stretched the playing time to try and fit it in, but the possibility of cramming a game into the first day, or even worse having the match held over two days has farce written all over it. A shared trophy is unsatisfactory, but an unfair final would be even more so

Send in Englands hardest player (Stokes?) and the same from Pakistan. Just have a straightener. Shirts off, in the rain. Winner takes the trophy.

[VTR]

Not a bad idea. I'd go Stokes and Hales for England. Stokes to get a 3 day ban for fighting. Hales banned for 5 years

[KP_fan]

Watched the game on the go on a phone
Some analysis:

-India put enough runs on the board ...should have been very competitive if not unassailable by the standards of this tournament.

-So what really happened ?
1. Primarily Eng batted well....very well indeed at an unexpected level.

2. When under assault the Indian captain looked clueless. He got a break against BD, today there was nowhere to hide.

3. Oft discussed one worry was lack of effectiveness of Indian spinners leading into semis
Was hard to get 4 overs between 2 spinners in all except Nederland game.
When seamers were under assault we did not have spin resources to pull it back.
There will be consequences in the aftermath of this result ( or I hope there might be)

For now of non partisan interest to me is final
Where both Pak and Eng have raised the level of their game
Social media in India is flooded with Memes and plenty of support for Eng to go and demolish Pak in finals.

My Take...Pak are favorites to lift this edition

[VTR]

I don't think there's a favourite. These sides had a recent 4-3 series, with some blowouts in there. I don't buy into that being because Pakistan are mercurial, more the nature of T20. Also the narrative around Pakistan being favourites as they are cornered tigers again like 92 is tacky at best

[Duty281]

Rare outbreak of common sense in the ICC, as they've extended the 'extra time' allowed on the reserve day to four hours. I pointed out before that, if the game goes to the reserve day, then the scheduled start is 15:00 and it has to be completed by 20:10 local time, no matter what. Well now that limit has been pushed to 22:10 local time.

Current forecast on the BBC is that Melbourne is looking dry between 19:00 and 23:00 on Sunday, but these forecasts change a lot and the Met Office disagrees with them in any case. Monday is looking hopeless.

Sounds as though Mark Wood won't be fit for the final, which will be a cruel blow for both him and England.

[king_carlos]

Not a bad idea. I'd go Stokes and Hales for England. Stokes to get a 3 day ban for fighting. Hales banned for 5 years

David Willey looks a dark horse for a bare knuckle decider.

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