Player of the Match
Player of the Match

END OF OVER:
20 | 14 Runs 1 Wkt | ENG: 209/6 (40 runs required, RR: 10.45)

  • Joe Root90 (49b)
  • Stuart Broad4 (2b)
  • James Faulkner4-0-39-1
  • Shane Watson4-0-42-1

10.10pm: We've just seen more than twice as many runs in 40 overs as England scored in 98 at The Oval last Friday. What does that tell us? Probably something terrible... Anyway, Gnasher's report will chronicle tonight's circus freakshow of batting - join us again in a couple of days for the rematch. Cheerio

10pm: Right, time for the post-match rubdown. England captain, Stuart Broad: "We're really disappointed that we lost but full credit has to go to the way Australia batted, Finch especially. We tried everything but he was unstoppable, he hit 14 sixes, it was incredible. His first ball went for six. We knew it was going to be a good wicket but not quite that good. The batsmen want to pitch a tent up here and the bowlers want to get on the flight to Durham. Hopefully we get the same excitement up there, though. Joe did incredibly well in his first international T20 innings, it's what we've come to expect."

Australia captain, George Bailey: "I think the only innings I've seen like [Finch's] was Chris Gayle in the IPL. When he hits sixes he tries to hit them 40 rows back... We've found that Watto is so good at playing spin bowling, with a view to the next World T20, we can have him come in at four and take them out. We knew it was going to be a really good wicket and would be a hard ground to defend. There are always a few things to work on, though. I thought we bowled back of a length a bit more, and changed things up. We were a bit short to Root, who likes it there. Fawad Ahmed's last over was nice, his first game, big occasion but he go through it okay."

Aaron Finch, to the surprise of no one, is named Man of the Match: "It's good to come here from the Australia A side and play some good cricket. It was one of those days, not easy for the quicks, no spin, so I managed to get it away." Nice line in understatement, there, from the man who made the highest-ever score in Twenty20 internationals earlier tonight.

9.50pm: By most available metrics, Australia smashed that. It was a contest that rained sixes (until England batted), sweated fours, the highest-scoring T20 international ever - England made their second-highest score and still lost by a distance. Aaron Finch stamped his mark so hard on the game that England will still feel sore when they wake up tomorrow morning. Joe Root's jaw might also smart, after getting clocked by his third ball, but again he showed he doesn't mind wearing one - and that was his first T20I knock, too.

19.6
1
Faulkner to Root, 1 run, dropped, off the last ball! Root swished across the line, got a thin inside edge but Wade grassed it, they scamper one more as the ball ran behind the keeper - but it's fairly academic, as Australia win by 39 runs
19.5
1b
Faulkner to Broad, 1 bye, Broad swings and misses, they run anyway as Wade underarms past the stumps
19.4
4
Faulkner to Broad, FOUR, no but he'll get four instead, standing up and levering the ball back over the bowler's head, mid-off is up and the ball races away

Out comes Stuart Broad - can he get Root on strike?

Australia tour of England and Scotland 2013 News

England 2nd innings Partnerships

WktRunsPlayers
1st33MJ LumbAD Hales
2nd0LJ WrightAD Hales
3rd4LJ WrightEJG Morgan
4th5EJG MorganJE Root
5th95RS BoparaJE Root
6th66JE RootJC Buttler
7th6SCJ BroadJE Root