T20 World Cup’22 FINAL: With their victory over Pakistan in the 2022 Men’s T20 World Cup final at the MCG by five wickets with one over remaining, England became the first team to win both men’s World Cups at the same time.

Ben Stokes, England’s match-winner in the 50-over final three years ago, led another run chase and scored his first 50 in T20 internationals in the biggest game of the format. He had fought his way to 24 from 34 balls, but a flurry of boundaries in the final over took away the scoring pressure.

When Shaheen Shah Afridi caught Shadab Khan in the 13th over of England’s chase, he changed the game and got rid of Harry Brook. The realisation that Shaheen had jarred his right knee, which had previously threatened to exclude him from the tournament, brought an abrupt end to Pakistan’s celebrations.

After receiving treatment, he attempted to return for his third over with 41 needed off 30 balls, but he pulled out of his run-up once and sent a shot at 71 mph/114 kph to Moeen Ali. Stokes focused on Iftikhar Ahmed after he completed his overrun: He missed just short of long-off, slammed him through cover for four, and then he launched him back over his head for six.

The required rate was less than a run per ball when Moeen started the following over with back-to-back boundaries off Mohammad Wasim. Wasim went back to York Moeen, but Stokes knocked him out of cover and threw him through the leg side to win the championship for England.

HIGHLIGHTS

Curran strikes early – and late

Throughout this T20 World Cup, England primarily used Sam Curran at the final whistle, but his role slightly changed in the knockout rounds. Curran bowled a second powerplay over in both the semi-final and final due to the inclusion of Chris Jordan, who took Mark Wood’s place after he was injured in the previous two games.

It was very important.After being asked to bat first on a slow pitch, Pakistan started slowly. Their only boundary in the first four overs was a six that Mohammad Rizwan slog-swept off Chris Woakes. Curran struck in his second over as Rizwan tried to pick up the pace, inside-edging a powerful cover drive onto the base of his leg stump.

Utilising the MCG’s vast square boundaries to his advantage, Curran returned at the final point and had Shan Masood and Mohammad Nawaz caught by Liam Livingstone at deep midwicket. He won awards for player of the match and tournament after posting remarkable figures of 3 for 12 in four boundary-less overs.

Rashid finds his form

Adil Rashid had a World Cup with two halves:In his first three appearances, he went 0 for 89 in 12 overs, but England insisted they were confident he would perform well when it mattered. He did his job well, going 1 for 16 and 1 for 20 against Sri Lanka and India, respectively. In the final, he made two crucial breakthroughs.

Mohammad Haris, the perilous No. 1 in Pakistan3, who attempted to clear long-on off Rashid’s first ball while running down the field, holed out to Stokes and was caught by neither Babar Azam nor Shan Masood. Masood, on the other hand, took on Livingstone and smashed him back to the ground for four, then six, to win by 16 in his one and only over.

Babar misjudged his googly back to Rashid when he hit the next ball, and Rashid then hit a wicket maiden as Iftikhar struggled to read his variations. During a 36-run partnership with Masood, he gave up only one boundary in his final over, when Shadab hit him over the head, but regular wickets at the end kept Pakistan at 137.

Chaos in the chase

One crucial battle stood out going into the final: Pakistan’s new-ball bowlers versus England’s opening batters. Jos Buttler and Alex Hales defeated India in the semi-final, but the tournament’s best pace trio was Shaheen, Naseem Shah, and Haris Rauf.

Shaheen landed the first punch, ripping Hales’ middle stump out of the ground with a full ball that brushed Buttler’s back pad on the way through. Buttler responded by saying: Naseem overpitched, frantic for one more early wicket, and was pinged through the covers for back to back limits.

After Dawid Malan failed to recover from a groin strain, Phil Salt batted for the first time in the tournament and scored two boundaries. However, when looking for a third, he picked short midwicket off Rauf, who roared in joy.

Despite Naseem beating Buttler’s outside edge five times thanks to one wild ball down the leg side and an audacious, trademark scoop shot that flew away for six, his sublime second over somehow cost 11 runs. England finished a chaotic powerplay 49 for 3 with Rauf reaping the benefits in the following over as Buttler fell behind.

The Stokes show

With the required rate under control, Stokes and Brook decided to work hard for the next six overs to reduce dot balls without taking too many chances. As the ball got older, both players had trouble timing, and it was hard to get boundaries: After the break for drinks, Stokes only scored one run from his first nine balls and was repeatedly bowled out by Naseem in another brilliant over.

With 45 required off 31 balls, Stokes appeared to be in trouble; however, he relieved some of the pressure by scoring four off the final ball of Rauf’s third over. When Shaheen signalled to the dugout that his night was over, he recognized an opportunity. When the part-time offspinner Iftikhar mistimed his first ball toward Babar at long-off, he threw his head back in disbelief. The ball missed the mark, and he smashed his final two balls to the boundary.

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After bringing up his first T20I fifty with a slap through the off side, Stokes swung and missed at Wasim before pushing him away for the winning run with the scores level. With their legacy as one of the great limited-overs teams secured, England’s bench ran onto the field in celebration.