Kolkata, Feb 14 (IANS) England captain Harry Brook expressed relief after his side secured two crucial points with a five-wicket win over Scotland at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday, praising Jofra Archer’s sharp spell, Tom Banton’s match-winning knock at No. 4, and the middle-order’s composure in steadying the chase after an early wobble.
Tom Banton’s unbeaten 63 and Jacob Bethell’s 32 helped England edge out Scotland by five wickets with 10 balls to spare.
“I’m just glad that we got over the line tonight. We were over the moon with that. They batted really well against our spinners again in that first couple of spells and were ahead of us at one point, but we managed to drag things back really well,” said Brook after the match.
England’s bowlers managed to reduce Scotland to 152/9 after facing some early aggression. Jofra Archer returned to his best form with (2-14), hitting tough lengths that unsettled the batters. Archer got rid of George Munsey early in the inning and then came back to get rid of Brandon McMullen with sharp bouncers.
Praising Archer, Brook said, “Yeah, he was slamming the length beautifully today. He got his lines and lengths perfect and bowled with gas again and with good skills. So it’s nice to see him back in the park and doing really well.”
England had a rocky start to the chase with both Phil Salt and Jos Buttler getting out within the first couple of overs (2 and 3, respectively). Scotland’s opening bowlers (Brad Currie and Richie McMullen) were exceptional through the first 6 overs, getting England behind.
The momentum shifted a bit when Jacob Bethell and Tom Banton put together a 66-run third-wicket partnership. Bethell (32) fell, and before long, Harry Brook was back in the dugout after scoring just 4 runs. Banton then went on to dominate the run chase. He got to 50 runs in only 33 balls and was well supported by Sam Curran. The two added 46 runs off 33 balls for the 5th wicket and swung the match in England’s favour.
Curran ended up throwing his wicket away for 28 runs off 20 balls in the 17th over; however, Banton had already put England in a position to win. He finished with 63 runs off 41 balls and laid the foundation for England’s victory with composure and maturity. Will Jacks (16*) hit the winning runs with 10 balls remaining as England won by 5 wickets.
On Banton’s inning, Brook said, “Yeah, he was awesome, and that’s why he slid in nicely at that number 4 role and looked to take down spinners like he did today, and it came off, and he deserves all of that, and he’s played really nicely. I’ve always had confidence in our middle order. We knew it was going to be a decent wicket; it wasn’t really going to change. And then with this outfield as well, we knew that we didn’t really need to take too many unnecessary risks and just hit in the gaps, and then when you get the ball to hit for six, try to hit for six. Bants (Banton) played it beautifully today, and Sam’s (Curran) little cameo as well was awesome.”
–IANS
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