Pakistan have been flattened by a great innings from Pietersen. He was authoritative from the start, hitting the ball very hard, collecting boundaries from bad balls and working the good ones away for singles and twos. Pakistan were a disappointment in the field after scrapping their way to 147, dropping easy chances and missing what should have been a simple run out in the penultimate over. They are not down and out yet, but they will need to search for some inspiration in their remaining games.
Lots of you have questioned Afridi's tactics in this game, particularly his rotation of the bowlers in the middle overs. Indeed, what Pakistan really needed was for their spinners to get some rhythm with a good spell in the middle, as England's did, to keep the runs down as England chased a modest target. It is also unclear what Fawad Alam's role in the side is, as he bats at No. 8 and doesn't bowl.
"You can't afford to miss opportunities," says Afridi, "had we taken the opportunities the match could have turned out differently."
"Let's not get too carried away, but we're delighted with the win and to get some points on the board," says Collingwood. "There are a few areas to improve on, we were a bit sloppy at the end, but I was pleased with how we took the momentum back in the middle of Pakistan's innings."
Kevin Pietersen gets the Man of the Match award. "The ankle's fine," he says. "It's not an easy wicket but our boys bowled really well on it. We need one more victory and hopefully we can get to a semi-final." On Twenty20 cricket: "The more you play, the better you get. Twenty20 cricket is serious business now."
That's all for today from your commentary team, Sahil Dutta and Liam Brickhill. Andrew Miller's bulletin is up, so do check that out for an incisive and indepth look at today's game. South Africa take on New Zealand in the second game of the day, so stay with Cricinfo for full coverage of what should be a thrilling encounter, with both sides looking to build momentum in the Super Eights stage.
END OF OVER:19 | 6 Runs | ENG: 146/4 (2 runs required from 6 balls, RR: 7.68, RRR: 2.00)
- Kevin Pietersen69 (51b)
- Luke Wright1 (1b)
- Mohammad Amir4-0-25-0
- Saeed Ajmal3-0-14-2
END OF OVER:18 | 4 Runs 1 Wkt | ENG: 140/4 (8 runs required from 12 balls, RR: 7.77, RRR: 4.00)
- Kevin Pietersen64 (46b)
- Saeed Ajmal3-0-14-2
- Mohammad Asif4-0-43-0
EJG Morgan b Saeed Ajmal 5 (8m 7b 1x4 0x6) SR: 71.42
END OF OVER:17 | 11 Runs | ENG: 136/3 (12 runs required from 18 balls, RR: 8.00, RRR: 4.00)
- Kevin Pietersen64 (46b)
- Eoin Morgan1 (1b)
- Mohammad Asif4-0-43-0
- Shahid Afridi4-0-28-1