ENG vs AUS | 2nd T20I - Ask me anything ft Jos Buttler, Mitchell ‘struggling’ Starc and Australia’s brotherhood
In ask me anything, this time England is taking on Australia in the second T20I after the first was aligned in their favor courtesy to the Australian batting slump. Was there twist and turns? Who ended up on the winning side? All these questions will be answered as you read the whole article.
Brief scores: England 158/4 (Jos Buttler 77 and Aston Agar 2/27) beat Australia 157/7 (Aaron Finch 40 and Chris Jordan 2/40) by six wickets
So England won the toss and decided to bowl, right?
No, it was Finch who won to toss and decided to bat on a track that seemed to have something for the bowlers in the first innings. Maybe he was being adamant to batting first after the first loss in which they collapsed right when everyone thought the match was over.
Was it the right move?
Pure no. It was evident in the second over itself that Finch had made a blunder by opting to bat first. They were 2 down in the second over itself, sort of continuing from where they left off in the previous match. Somehow they were able to manage to get a bare minimum but the decision to bat was as far from right as it could be on at least this conditions at Southampton.
Did Jofra Archer answer his critics?
Archer had that extra kick in his bowling that we are used to seeing in him. He was smooth off the blocks and picked up the wicket in the first over itself, that too of David Warner, who could have taken the game away alone. Although he had only 1 wicket to show, he did bowl well with rare bad balls, giving away 32 runs in 4 overs. This cannot be called a solid answer to his critics but something is better than nothing.
Does Australia believe in brotherhood?
That's a weird question to ask but Australia gave away wickets upfront in bunches, just like they did at the end of the last match. They seem to enjoy each other’s company in the dressing room, so much so that they are willing to give away their wickets just to be with them. Alex Carey was more like Alex ‘does not’ Carey and got out in the most terrible fashion, trying to swing one out of the park but ended up hitting the ball in keeper’s gloves, just a testament to his love for his teammates in the dressing room.
How did they manage to revive?
If it can be called revive, Australia managed to not embarrass themselves with a petty low score and saved their faces by reaching 157. The lower middle-order along with Finch did most of the scoring and repaired the leaking boat. The only purpose that this score fulfilled was saving Australia’s faces, for winning the match was out of the question.
Has Starc lost his mojo?
There was a time when the best batsmen of the world feared facing Starc, but now he can only dream about that time. The lanky pace bowler is nowhere near to his best, with occasional glimpses of his past. However, he did manage to pick up one wicket through hit-wicket. But wait, he didn’t scare the batsman into hitting his wickets rather it was Bairstow’s ballet skills that led to his end.
Did Buttler start the fireworks?
Of course, he did. He was playing as if he was taking a stroll in the park and could have even scored 77 off 54 balls by batting lefty. He smashed the bowlers all over the park picking up where he left off in the previous match. He didn’t seem to care about the reputation of the bowlers rather playing them as ordinary as they were.
What is with the late wickets?
This is an interesting phenomenon of this series, which repeated itself in the second match as well. Just when Australia was cruising in the first match, they suddenly, hit a road bump and everyone collapsed. The same was happening with England as well as they lost three wickets in quick succession, but they managed to pick themselves up, not repeating what happened with Australia.
What's with the bizarre reviews?
Oh, don't ask me what's up with these bizarre reviews. It's like watching highlights of a game played on Don Bradman cricket or sorts because those reviews were more desperate than an employee running back home (at least before the pandemic) on Friday night after work.
Did Eoin Morgan finish the match for England?
Well, he tried to but was caught by Maxwell at covers. He played it very casually, probably just a little less casual from Bairstow. He was supposed to end the match, but maybe, he changed his mind and wanted to give a last-over finish to the match. Morgan justed to make the match interesting, he was feeling bad for Australia losing one-sided.
Ali failed again?
Quite opposite. He managed to surprise his critics with is little cameo at the end. Just when England was looking to pull off an ‘Australia’, he came onto the crease not caring about anything and hit a six and a four in the second last over, finishing off the game for England. He looked good but let’s see if he can extend this to the next match.
What next for England?
Oh interestingly if you have noted or not, England are now the No.1 ranked side in the shortest format. Kudos to them, first in the ODI cricket now in T20I cricket, England are certainly becoming a force to reckon with, at least with the white-ball. If you ask if Test is next? I would say a long way away but let's keep it to the shortest format now, can we?