Player of the Match
Player of the Match

END OF OVER:
19 | 22 Runs | AUS: 177/5 | RR: 9.31

  • Matthew Wade41 (17b)
  • Marcus Stoinis40 (31b)
  • Shaheen Shah Afridi4-0-35-1
  • Hasan Ali4-0-44-0

10.00pm What a game, eh? One of the great T20 World Cup games by my reckoning, just for how it seemed to swing this way and that at the end of every over. And at the end of it, a finish to just knock your breath away. So it's Australia and New Zealand, then, to slug it out on Sunday. The T20 World Cup awaits a brand-new winner. Until Sunday, then, it's goodbye and good night from me, Gnasher, Chandan and Raghav.

Aaron Finch: "It was a great game of cricket. The way Matthew Wade held his nerve was outstanding, that partnership with Marcus Stoinis was crucial. I just got my feet in a tangle first up. It happens, in T20 cricket you get some good ones every now and then. I thought we were pretty sloppy today, we dropped a couple, though they were tough ones. But what we showed today was that you need all your players, everyone in your 15 to contribute. [On chasing teams winning so many games] It's really strange. There's no dew, but the lights take effect and the wicket speeds up a bit. I was hoping to lose the toss and put a total on the board and defend it, but it was good to chase that target down in the end."

Babar Azam: "The way we started in the first half, we got the total we targeted. But we gave them too much of a chance at the end of the chase. If we had taken that catch, it might have made the difference. But the way we played this tournament, the way we gelled, I'm very satisfied as a captain. I hope we try and learn from our mistakes after this. Definitely, if we've played so well in a tournament, we'll gain confidence, and we'll continue to try and play this way. The roles we'd defined for the players, they all executed very well. The way the crowds supported us, we enjoyed it a lot as a team, as we always do, and I'm very grateful for it."

Matthew Wade is the Player of the Match. "Talking to Marcus Stoinis at the other end, we discussed what the bowlers were looking to do. [Shaheen] probably bowled more pace-on than I expected. When I got out there with Marcus, he was really confident we'd get them, even though I was a little unsure. He found the boundaries early on, and I was happy to chip in at the end. It got down to two a ball, and from there it was if you got one in your arc, just try to hit it. Probably hasn't sunk in, I've just finished batting. I'm just happy to contribute. I was out of the team for a while, just happy I got an opportunity again."

Divyank Singh: "How good was Cummins' 19th"

Sumith: "Those missed run-outs! Both Wade and Stoinis could have been sent packing but this happens in pressure games where even Steve Smith can drop a regulation catch. Pakistan need to work on their throwing! " -- Good that you mentioned the Smith drop. This ground and its unique floodlights cause quite a few catches to go down. He's gong to get a lot of grief for his drop, but Hasan's was just one of many.

Mustafa Moudi : "Great batting from Wade-Stoinis but Pakistan lost this match due to their poor fielding tonight!!"

LG: "So we have a new WC winner! " -- Indeed!

Aravind: "Clearly, thick moustache is the secret to finishing games ( Wade and Neesham)"

Ghumman: "M. Hussey and M. Wade from our minds never gonna fade."

9.42pm Phew. What a game this was. Seesawing this way and that right through, until the absolute carnage that made up its 39th over. Shaheen Shah Afridi has been one of the players of this tournament, but he ran into Matthew Wade who was just seeing the ball like he was seeing the future. Wade and Marcus Stoinis came in at 96 for 5, when Australia needed 81 off 46 balls. They only needed 40 of those. Wow. On another day, Fakhar Zaman and Shadab Khan would have been matchwinners. But this night belongs to Marcus Stoinis and Matthew Wade.

18.6
6
Shaheen Shah Afridi to Wade, SIX, wow, wow, wow. 6, 6, 6. And Australia are in the final. Another attempted yorker, and again, Wade shuffles across to expose all his stumps, and scoops it over the boundary behind him. Literally over the keeper's right shoulder. What an incredible shot. What an incredible finish from Wade. New Zealand finished last night's game in the 19th over. Australia have done the same tonight
18.5
6
Shaheen Shah Afridi to Wade, SIX, six more, Wade is on absolute fire here. This was a fullish cutter, coming into him from just outside off, and he simply clears his front leg and whips it away over midwicket

12 off 8 now. What a hit, phew.

18.4
6
Shaheen Shah Afridi to Wade, SIX, shot, what a terrific shot that is from Wade! Looks for the yorker, and Wade expects it. Shuffles across, exposes all his stumps, and absolutely middles the pants off this scoop over short fine leg. Carries over the boundary with ease
18.3
2
Shaheen Shah Afridi to Wade, 2 runs, dropped! Hasan Ali's not having the greatest of games here. Fullish, angling into the stumps, and Wade swings too early at his slog, toe-ends it in the air to the left of deep midwicket, where Hasan runs too quickly, almost overruns the ball, and lets it slip through his fingers
18.3
1w
Shaheen Shah Afridi to Wade, 1 wide, looks for the yorker, ends up sliding it down leg, past the attempted flick

Long-on, long-off, deep square leg, deep midwicket, deep point. Over the wicket to Wade as well.

18.2
1lb
Shaheen Shah Afridi to Stoinis, 1 leg bye, appeal for lbw as Stoinis shuffles across and misses a leg-side whip. Not given, and Pakistan have reviewed... Did it pitch in line. And if so, was it missing off stump? It was just short of a length too, so height may also be an issue. No bat on it. The ball pitches just outside leg, so Stoinis lives on
18.1
0
Shaheen Shah Afridi to Stoinis, no run, edged, and Rizwan isn't sure if it's carried. It's that difficult length just short of a length, and it's the cutter angling across Stoinis. Looks to pull, gets the bottom edge, and it falls just short of Rizwan diving to his left

22 off two. Wow. Shaheen to bowl the 19th. Over the wicket to Stoinis.

Hemanth : "I DONT HAVE ANY NAILS LEFT FOR THR FINALS!!!"

END OF OVER:
18 | 15 Runs | AUS: 155/5 (22 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 8.61, RRR: 11.00)

  • Matthew Wade21 (13b)
  • Marcus Stoinis40 (29b)
  • Hasan Ali4-0-44-0
  • Haris Rauf3-0-32-0
17.6
4
Hasan Ali to Wade, FOUR, full on leg stump, and that's superbly put away, great wrist work. He's working slightly against the angle on this flick, even though it was on leg stump, and he got his front leg out of the way and whipped it to beat short fine leg to his right and still get it a long way away from deep square leg, to his left
17.5
1
Hasan Ali to Stoinis, 1 run, slower ball, into the pitch, finishes at just under waist height close to off stump. Can't get any elevation off those skiddy back-of-a-length balls, and he pulls along the floor to deep midwicket
17.4
1
Hasan Ali to Wade, 1 run, in the blockhole on off stump, seemed to swing a bit from middle to off. Swiped towards deep midwicket
17.3
6
Hasan Ali to Wade, SIX, wow, that's a big, big hit at a big, big moment. Length ball angling across to finish outside off. It's not the easiest ball to hit, it's the offcutter, but Wade manufactures a lot of bottom-hand power to launch that high and far over long-on

Over the wicket now.

17.2
2
Hasan Ali to Wade, 2 runs, full on leg stump, whipped to the left of deep midwicket

Around the wicket to Wade.

17.1
1
Hasan Ali to Stoinis, 1 run, back of a length, angling into the stumps and denying Stoinis room. Shuffles across to work it through square leg. Stoinis, pushing his bat into the crease, and Hasan, running back to the stumps to collect the throw, semi-collide at that end

Rauf has one over left, Shaheen has one left, and Hasan has one too - but is he fit to bowl? Ah, here he is, to bowl the 18th.

END OF OVER:
17 | 13 Runs | AUS: 140/5 (37 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 8.23, RRR: 12.33)

  • Marcus Stoinis38 (27b)
  • Matthew Wade8 (9b)
  • Haris Rauf3-0-32-0
  • Hasan Ali3-0-29-0

13 off that over. Stoinis is keeping Australia in this.

16.6
1
Haris Rauf to Stoinis, 1 run, slower ball, shortish, just outside off, pulled towards deep square leg
16.5
0
Haris Rauf to Stoinis, no run, back of a length legcutter, straightens on off stump at 147kph, and Stoinis can only block it back. Was shaping to work it leg side, but he saw the release and knew it would straighten
16.4
4
Haris Rauf to Stoinis, FOUR, there's that power again. Terrific stuff. He's manufactured room to really smash two near-yorkers with immense power in this over. Up on an off-stumpish line, and he gets his front leg out of the way and whips through the line with his bottom hand to hit it past the bowler and beat long-off sprawled to his right
16.3
6
Haris Rauf to Stoinis, SIX, bam, that's what Stoinis can do. Not a bad ball in terms of intent, digs it into that back-of-a-length zone, but it sits up just outside off, and Stoinis holds his shape nicely and muscles it away over the midwicket boundary
16.2
2
Haris Rauf to Stoinis, 2 runs, excellent shot, but he only gets two for it. It's in the blockhole on off stump, and he lifts his front leg out of the way and whips it hard with his bottom hand, but Malik slides to his left at deep midwicket and makes a super save
16.1
0
Haris Rauf to Stoinis, no run, back of a length, slower ball close to off stump. Punched back to the bowler. He shuffled across to it and got too close to the line while looking to hit through the covers

Rauf to bowl his third over.

Just over two a ball needed. Teams back themselves to get that, but Australia don't have too much batting to come. Hasan is going off the field. He dropped to the ground after the last over, looking either ill or fatigued.

Australia 2nd innings Partnerships

WktRunsPlayers
1st1AJ FinchDA Warner
2nd51DA WarnerMR Marsh
3rd25DA WarnerSPD Smith
4th12DA WarnerGJ Maxwell
5th7MP StoinisGJ Maxwell
6th81MS WadeMP Stoinis

ICC Men's T20 World Cup

First Round Group A
TeamMWLPTNRR
SL33063.754
NAM3214-0.523
IRE3122-0.853
NED3030-2.46
First Round Group B
TeamMWLPTNRR
SCOT33060.775
BAN32141.733
OMA3122-0.025
PNG3030-2.655
Group 1
TeamMWLPTNRR
ENG54182.464
AUS54181.216
SA54180.739
SL5234-0.269
WI5142-1.641
BAN5050-2.383
Group 2
TeamMWLPTNRR
PAK550101.583
NZ54181.162
IND53261.747
AFG52341.053
NAM5142-1.89
SCOT5050-3.543