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T20 WC Updates: Brook on the attack after Afridi blitz

Tue, 24 February 2026

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21:22

Brook on the attack after Afridi blitz

England 53-3 (6 ovs) vs Pakistan 164-9 | Scorecard

Mohammad Nawaz comes into the attack and Tom Banton inside-edges one to short third and gets a single.

Harry Brook then nudges one to deep mid-wicket and gets a couple.

Four! Full delivery straying down the leg Brook goes down on his knees and sweeps over the short fine leg fielder.

Four more! Brook comes down and goes inside out over covers.

A dot later, Brook hammers a flat delivery on stumps straight down the ground for a maximum.

17 runs came off the over.

England finish the Powerplay with 53-3.

21:16

Afridi rips England apart

England 36-3 (5 ovs) vs Pakistan 164-9 | Scorecard

Saim Ayub comes into the attack and Jacob Bethell and Harry Brook take a single each off the first two deliveries.

Four! Bethell rocks back pulls one over the mid-wicket fielder for a boundary.

A dot later, Bethell miscues one to short fine leg but Usaman Tariq drops a tough chance. A single taken.

Four! Brook then eases one down to long-on for a boundary.

11 runs came off the over.

Shaheen Afridi with his third over and Bethell hits a full toss straight to the fielder at mid-off and gets off for a quick single.

Four! Brook shuffles across and muscles the slower delivery over mid-off for a boundary.

Follows it up with a single through mid-on.

A dot follows.

Out! Afridi strikes again, Bethell is out, caught by Sahibzada Farhan. Shortish delivery and Bethell attempts to pull it but top-edges it into the deep.

Bethell goes for 8 off 10 balls with a boundary.

Tom Banton is the new man in and a single (leg byes) to end the over.

7 runs came off the over.

21:06

Afridi's twin strike rocks England

England 18-2 (3 ovs) vs Pakistan 164-9 | Scorecard

Salman Mirza to bowl from the other end and Harry Brook greets him with a boundary through backward square leg.

Brook then inside-edges one to mid-on. No run on offer.

Another dot follows.

Six! Shortish delivery outside off and Brook swats it away over deep square leg fence for a maximum.

A single through deep backward point to end the 11-run over.

Shaheen Afridi with his second over and Brook steers the first delivery to short third man gets off the strike.

Jos Buttler is on strike and he gets off the mark with a couple through deep square leg.

Out! Jos Buttler's poor run continues as he falls again cheaply, caught by Usman Khan. Buttler slashes an away going delivery and inside edges it to the keeper.

He goes for 2 off 3 balls.

Jacob Bethell comes to the crease and after playing out two dots he gets off the mark with a single through backward square leg. Just 4 runs came off Afridi's second over.

20:54

Salt goes; England off to horror start

England 3-1 (1 ovs) vs Pakistan 164-9 | Scorecard

The chase is on. England openers Philip Salt and Jos Buttler are out in the middle.

Shaheen Afridi to open the bowling for Pakistan. Salt is on strike and he is out, caught by Usman Khan! Afridi strikes with the first ball

Good length delivery swinging away and Salt stands firm and plays inside the line but ends up edging it to the keeper.

Harry Brook comes to the crease and a dot later, he gets off the mark with a couple by tapping one to deep mid-wicket.

A dot later, Brook pushes one to cover and scampers for a single.

A dot to end the over. Just three runs came off it.

20:44

Farhan guides Pakistan to respectable total

Pakistan 164-9 (20 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Sam Curran to bowl the final over and Salman Mirza pushes one to covers and gets off for a quick single. Harry Brook collects the ball quickly and attempts a direct hit but misses.

Shadab Khan then flicks a low full toss to mid-wicket and takes a couple.

Another brace through long-on follows as Shadab inside-edges one to long-on.

Shadab then swings and misses a short delivery outside off.

Four! Pitched up delivery and Shadab flicks it to deep square leg fence. 160 up for Pakistan.

Final delivery and Shadab is run out, attempting a second run!

Shadab goes for a 11-ball 23 with four hits to the fence. 10 runs came off the over.

Pakistan finish with 164-9, thanks to sublime half-century by Sahibzada Farhan. England must be happy with their bowling effort as the total appears to be sub-par.

20:32

Shadab takes Pakistan past 150

Pakistan 154-8 (19 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Jofra Archer is back into the attack with his final over and Shaheen Afridi drives the length delivery towards long-on and gets off the strike.

Shadab Khan then taps the next delivery through cover point and gets a single.

Out! Shaheen departs, caught by Sam Curran. Pakistan lose their eighth wicket. Shaheen tries to pull a short ball over deep square leg but fails to get the elevation and Curran takes a great catch on the edge of the boundary.

Shaheen goes for 2 off three balls.

Salman Mirza comes to the crease and after a dot he gets a quick single by nudging one through cover and brings up Pakistan's 150.

Shadab Khan then goes deep and cuts one firmly through deep backward point for a boundary. Seven runs came off the over.

20:27

Pakistan crumble; England on top

Pakistan 147-7 (18 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Liam Dawson is bowling and Shadab Khan is dropped! Harry Brook lets one go through his hands at extra cover and the ball hits the fence.

A wide, single and a dot follow.

Out! Usman Khan is out, caught by Jamie Overton.

Pakistan are falling apart. Usman Khan one to wide long-on but the ball goes straight to Overton who takes a safe catch near the ropes.

Usman goes for a 5-ball 8 with a single hit to the fence.

Mohammad Nawaz comes to the crease and he is adjudged LBW off the first delivery he faced! He reviews it straightaway and is out!

Nawaz departs for a golden duck as Pakistan lose their seventh.

Shaheen Afridi is the new man in and he gets off the mark with a single through long-on.

Seven runs and two wickets came off the over.

20:20

Rashid strikes; Pakistan 5 down

Pakistan 140-5 (17 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Adil Rashid is bowling out and Fakhar Zaman smacks the first delivery over the long-on boundary for a six!

A dot later Rashid has his revenge! Fakhar Zaman is out, caught by Liam Dawson. Tossed up delivery and Fakhar attempts a slog sweep but top-edges it to backward square leg where Dawson takes a good catch running backwards.

He goes for a 16-ball 25 with two boundaries and sixes each.

Usman Khan comes to the crease and gets off the mark with a couple through deep mid-wicket.

A dot later, he pulls out the slog sweep and deposits the ball in the stands behind the mid-wicket boundary.

14 runs came off the over.

20:15

Farhan departs; Pakistan 4 down

Pakistan 126-4 (16 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Sam Curran is back into the attack with his second and Sahibzada Farhan and Fakhar Zaman pick up four singles off the first four balls.

Farhan then taps the fifth delivery to mid-off but no run on offer.

A single off the final delivery as Farhan taps one back to the left of the bowler. Just five runs came off the over.

Jamie Overton is back with his third over and Farhan swings and misses a short ball outside off.

Six! Farhan stands still and bludgeons a short delivery over the long-on fence for a maximum.

Follows it up with a boundary over the fielder at extra cover.

Out! Farhan departs after a good knock as he is adjudged LBW. He reviews the on-field decision but it is three reds as he attempts to flick an overpitched delivery but misses.

He goes for a 45-ball 63 with seven fours and two sixes.

Shadab Khan comes to the crease and gets off the mark with a boundary through backward point.

A dot to end the 14-run over.

20:03

Farhan slams 37-ball fifty

Pakistan 107-3 (14 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Will Jacks continues and Fakhar Zaman greets him with a huge six over long-on.

A single thorough fine leg follows.

Six! Sahibzada Farhan joins the act by hoisting Jacks over deep mid-wicket for a maximum. 100 up for Pakistan in 13.3 overs.

Farhan then taps one through sweeper cover for a couple.

A dot later, he gets another single and completes his fifty from 37 deliveries.

16 runs came off Jacks' second over.

19:59

Babar goes; Pakistan in deep trouble

Pakistan 91-3 (13 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Will Jacks comes into the attack and Sahibzada Farhan drives the first delivery to long-on and gets off the strike.

Back-to-back four! Fakhar Zaman gets off the mark with a boundary through fine leg before steering one through deep point.

Two singles and a dot to end the 11-run over.

Adil Rashid is back into the attack with his third over and Farhan guides the first delivery to deep square leg gets off the strike.

A no-ball follows as a fielder is short inside the circle.

Four dots and a single follow.

Four! Farhan finishes the over by sweeping a googly to the deep fence.

Nine runs came off the over.

19:52

Babar goes; Pakistan in deep trouble

Pakistan 73-3 (11 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Jamie Overton is back into the attack and Sahibzada Farhan plays a dot before working the second delivery to long-on for a single.

Two more singles follow.

Out! Overton cleans up Babar Azam. Big blow for Pakistan as their most experienced campaigner is back in the hut. Length delivery around off and Babar plays it away from the body and gets beaten as the ball keeps low.

Babar goes for a 24-ball 25 with two hits to the fence.

Fakhar Zaman is the new man in. Just three runs came off the over.

19:47

Pakistan 70-2 at half-way mark

Pakistan 70-2 (10 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Liam Dawson is back into the attack with his third and Babar Azam and Sahibzada Farhan pick up a single each off the first two deliveries.

Babar then edges one through deep mid-wicket and gets a couple.

A dot and a single through deep mid-wicket follow.

A dot to end the over. Just five runs came off it.

Adil Rashid continues and concedes just four singles off in his second over.

Pakistan are 70-2 at the half-way mark.

19:39

Babar, Farhan steady Pakistan

Pakistan 61-2 (8 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Sam Currant comes into the attack to bowl the first over after the Powerplay and Babar Azam chops a slower off-cutter to backward point and is back for the second run, thanks to an overthrow.

Follows it up with a single through long-off.

Sahibzada Farhan then drags one to long-on for a single and brings up Pakistan 50.

A dot and a single follow.

Four! Farhan finishes the over with a boundary by crunching a full delivery outside off down the ground.

Nine runs came off the over.

Adil Rashid comes into the attack and starts off with a dot and a wide down the leg.

Another dot later, Babar nudges one to deep mid-wicket and gets off the strike.

A single through deep square leg follows.

Babar then flicks a slower one to deep square leg and gets a couple.

Follows it up with a single through deep mid-wicket.

A dot to end the 6-run over.

19:29

Babar, Farhan steady Pakistan

Pakistan 46-2 (6 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Jofra Archer is back into the attack and Sahibzada Farhan and Babar Azam pick two singles off the first two deliveries.

Farhan then taps one down the ground for another single.

A dot later, Babar then pulls a short ball on stumps through right of mid-wicket for a boundary.

Four more! Another shortish delivery and Babar opens the bat face and guides it to the third man fence.

11 runs came off the over.

Liam Dawson with his second over and after two dots Farhan flicks a fuller delivery on the pads through the gap between square and fine leg for a boundary.

A dot later, Farhan steers one to deep square and picks up a couple.

6 runs came off the over. Pakistan end the Powerplay on 46/2.

19:22

Pakistan off to a shaky start

Pakistan 29-2 (4 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Jofra Archer continues and Saim Ayub is on strike.

Out! Ayub departs, caught by Jacob Bethell. Archer bangs in a short delivery and Ayub top-edges it to Bethell in the deep. Pakistan lose their first wicket.

Ayub goes for 7 from as many balls with a single hit to the fence.

Salman Agha comes to the crease and plays out two dots before getting off the mark with a single through deep square.

Four! Length ball and Farhan looks for a mighty heave but gets a thick inside-edge and the ball runs away to the fine leg boundary.

Four more! Another thick edge off a short ball as Farhan attempts a pull.

Nine runs came off the over.

Liam Dawson comes into the attack and Agha dances down and flicks it through mid-wicket. Bethell tries to cut it but the ball hits his body and rolls over the ropes.

A dot follows.

Out! Agha departs, caught by Jamie Overton.

Wideth on offer and Agha looks to smoke this straight down the ground but miscues it out to Overton at long-off who takes a smart catch.

The skipper goes for 5 off 6 balls with a single boundary.

Babar Azam is the new man in and he gets off the mark with a push to mid-wicket.

A single and a dot to end the over. 6 runs came off it.

19:10

Pakistan off to a steady start

Pakistan 14-0 (2 ovs) vs England | Scorecard

Pakistan openers Sahibzada Farhan and Saim Ayub are out in the middle.

Farhan is on strike.

Jofra Archer to open the bowling for England and he starts off with a length ball which Farhan defends off the back foot.

Archen then beats Farhan on the under-edge with a late in-swinger.

Farhan then gets off the mark by cutting a short of a length delivery to sweeper cover for a single.

Ayub is then beaten by Archer with an outswinger.

A dot later, Ayub comes down and smashes one through backward point to open his account with a boundary.

Five runs came off the first over.

Jamie Overton to bowl from the other end and Farhan greets him with a boundary by flicking a short delivery to the backward point fence.

A dot later, Farhan pulls one to deep square and gets a single.

On the pads and Ayub flicks it confidently through mid-wicket and picks up a couple.

A dot and a wide down the leg follow.

A single through deep backward point to end the over. 9 runs came off it.

18:44

Pakistan bring in Afridi; England unchanged

Pakistan have won the toss and they have opted to bat first against England in their T20 World Cup 2026 Super Eights clash at the Pallekele International Stadium in Kandy.

Have a look at the Playing XIs:

England: Philip Salt, Jos Buttler (Wicketkeeper), Jacob Bethell, Tom Banton, Harry Brook (Captain), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Liam Dawson, Jamie Overton, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid.

Pakistan: Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha (Captain), Babar Azam, Fakhar Zaman, Usman Khan (Wicketkeeper), Shadab Khan, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Salman Mirza, Usman Tariq.

"We're going to bat first. It looks like a good pitch and we want to put up an above-par score and then try to defend it. It's our first game of the tournament here in Pallekele, but we've been playing most of our cricket in Colombo. Wherever you go, adjusting to conditions is key, and we've had to do that quickly after coming back just a couple of days ago. Having said that, conditions across Sri Lanka are generally similar, so we know what to expect today. Faheem misses out and Shaheen comes back into the side. We have a strong spin attack, but our fast bowling is just as good," Pakistan skipper Salman Agha said after winning the toss.

England captain Harry Brook said: "We would have batted as well. It's a fresh pitch compared to what we played on a couple of days ago, so hopefully it's a bit better and gives us a good chance to chase later on. We're going in with the same team and there's a lot of confidence in the group. We've done our homework on the opposition, including the unorthodox options like Usman Tariq. There's plenty of footage and data available, so we're well prepared. If we win tonight, a semifinal spot is within reach, but T20 cricket can turn quickly. We'll focus on playing our best cricket and sticking to our processes."

18:22

Pakistan face must-win pressure

Hello and welcome to the coverage of the T20 World Cup 2026 Super Eights match between England and Pakistan at the Pallekele International Stadium in Kandy.

On a surface expected to assist slow bowlers, both England and Pakistan will lean heavily on their spin resources in this crucial fixture.

England may not have hit top gear yet, but the two-time champions have found ways to win.

They enter the match with momentum after a dominant 51-run win over Sri Lanka that lifted them to the top of the Group B standings.

Pakistan, meanwhile, are in a must-win situation.

Defending a modest total against Sri Lanka, England played according to the conditions perfectly. Their spinners did the bulk of the work along with pacer Jofra Archer to trigger a dramatic Sri Lankan batting collapse.

The ever-reliable leg spinner Adil Rashid and left arm spinner Liam Dawson have combined well to get the wickets.

England also hold the advantage of familiarity with the venue, having swept a three-match T20I series here 3-0 earlier this month and also winning the Super Eight game against Sri Lanka.

Pakistan's batting inconsistency a concern

Pakistan, in contrast, were left frustrated after their Super Eights opener against New Zealand was washed out, leaving them with just one point and little room for error.

The Men in Green will bank on their varied spin arsenal on a track that traditionally slows as the match progresses.

However, Pakistan's own batting inconsistency remains a concern, especially against quality spin.

While opener Sahibzada Farhan, who is the leading run scorer of the tournament with 220 runs from four innings, has done well, the likes of Saim Ayub and captain Salman Agha, who is capable of both anchoring and accelerating, are yet to fire.

Head-to-head record

England and Pakistan have met 31 times in T20Is so far, with England winning 20 of them. Pakistan have won nine outings while one game each was tied and ended as a No Result.

Teams (from):

England: Harry Brook (Captain), Tom Banton, Jos Buttler, Ben Duckett, Phil Salt, Jacob Bethell, Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Josh Tongue, Luke Wood.

Pakistan: Salman Ali Agha (Captain), Abrar Ahmed, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Fakhar Zaman, Khawaja Nafay, Mohammad Nawaz, Mohammad Salman Mirza, Naseem Shah, Sahibzada Farhan, Saim Ayub, Shaheen Shah Afridi, Shadab Khan, Usman Khan, Usman Tariq.

T20 WC Updates: Brook on the attack after Afridi blitz

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