ICC T20 WC 2021 - Super 12 - Buttler smashes Aus to pulp with 71*; Eng win by 8 wkts, Aus drop to 3

Jos Buttler's sensational hitting blows Australia away, England stay at top.

Australia 124 for 10 in 20 overs (Finch 44, Agar 20; Woakes 2/23, Jordan 3/17) lose to England 126 for 2 in 11.4 overs (Jason Roy 22, Buttler 71*; Agar 1/15) by 8 wickets

Jos Buttler scores 71 off 32 balls including five 6s and five 4s (©GettyImages)

The 26th match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 saw a high-voltage clash between the top two teams of the 'Group of Death' in Super 12 Round, England and Australia, at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Saturday, October 30.

The arch-rivals entered the game riding high on confidence, both having won their respective matches so far. Australia registered a resounding victory over Sri Lanka and a close one against South Africa, winning the games by seven and five wickets, respectively. England, on the other hand, displayed power-packed performances in the games they played against West Indies and Bangladesh to seal victory to register a better net run-rate than their third opponents, which placed them at the apex of the T20 Word Cup 2021 points table.

Table-toppers and the No. 1 ranking T20I team, England, made full use of the opportunity they received by winning the toss and exploited the impact of the dew factor on the pitch, choosing to bat first. It was, without a shadow of doubt, the most favourable choice and a pretty much decisive one as the pitch has favoured the chasing team 12 out of 14 times in this T20 World Cup.

Defending the total was a challenging task on this pitch tonight and England rode on their favourable luck as they were able to decapitate the Aaron Finch-led outfit to give no room for the possibility for them to set up a hard-to-chase total.

England bowlers push Australia on the backseat

Australia boasting of one of the most destructive batters in the game in the form of David Warner, crumbled against the England bowling attack spearheaded by Chris Woakes and Adil Rashid as they lost early wickets in quick succession. The jolt was intense for them as Australia lost all the top dogs in the first 10 overs of the game.

David Warner, who struck form in the last two outings of the team, was coming at the back of a phenomenal 42-ball-65 display against Sri Lanka and was expected to be a big threat to the England bowlers. However, his form toggled towards the off mode as he lasted on the crease for not more than 1.2 overs, adding just a single run to the total.

Smith (1) was caught in the weave of the tactfully arranged bowling attacks, which saw him break his consistent form he has been carrying so far in the tournament. Australia's fate had been decided in the powerplay as they lost three wickets in those overs while putting up 21 runs on the scoreboard.

Glenn Maxwell, on whom Australia’s hopes were wagered on, succumbed to the beast mode of Woakes, while the former’s team also lost a review.

Skipper Aaron Finch (44) attempted to keep his team’s ship afloat as the Aussies kept losing wickets cheaply. He finished his innings as the leading run-scorer for Australia.

Tymal Mills and Chris Woakes took two wickets each, while Adil Rashid and Liam Livingstone each took one wicket.

England bundled out Australia for 125 runs, thanks to an all-round bowling effort highlighted by Chris Jordan (3/17). In the end, a few big hits, notably a couple from Pat Cummins' bat, enabled Australia set a modest mark of 126 for England to chase.

Read More: ICC T20 WC 2021 - Super 12 - Clinical England march ahead, decimate Bangladesh by 8 wickets

England’s marathon towards victory

England started the match all set to settle for nothing less than victory in Dubai on Saturday over their traditional rivals as they moved a step closer in their quest to replicate their 2010 World Cup victory. The team’s resolve was echoed loud and clear by Jos Buttler, who played a swashbuckling knock of 71 runs off 32 deliveries, studded with five maximums and as many boundaries, eventually guiding the team to a roaring victory.

Opener Jason Roy, with his 22 off 20, assisted Jos Buttler in setting the cards in place, giving a stable and a dependable start to their innings as England began their run-chase of an otherwise paltry total.

Buttler and Roy put up 66 runs for the opening wicket. The duo registered 66 runs in the powerplay losing no man, which is also the highest score in the recorded in the powerplay this World Cup so far.

Buttler joined forces with Jonny Bairstow to bring down the curtain to the most awaited battle, laced with sixes.

England beat Australia by eight wickets with a clinical performance to win their third successive match in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2021. The 2010 winners marched home in 11.4 overs, handing Australia their first defeat of the tournament. With this victory, the Eoin Morgan-led side affix themselves at the top of Group 1 and are almost about to seal a spot in the semi-finals.

ICC T20 World Cup Standings

Player of the Match

Chris Jordan was adjudged the Player of the Match for his 3/17 carnage at an economy rate of 4.25 that paralysed the Aussie batting line-up, paving way for their comfortable victory.

Stats and Facts

Top-scoring most times for a team in T20Is as captain

15 - Aaron Finch*

13 - Virat Kohli

12 - Faf du Plessis

Most Runs in England vs Australia T20Is

594 - Aaron Finch

392 - Jos Buttler

305 - Cameron White

Most 30+ scores for England in T20Is

31 - Jos Buttler (77 inns)

30 - Eoin Morgan (102 inns)

23 - Alex Hales (60 inns)

Here are some of the top twitter reactions from the ENGvsAUS game:

Read More: ICC T20 WC 2021 - Super 12 - Australia brush aside Sri Lanka by 7 wickets; Warner, Zampa shine