World T20 Today: Kiwis fire as Root guides England

LAST NIGHT

New Zealand showed their victory against India was no fluke, and Australia showed they still haven't stumbled on a winning formula when it comes to Twenty20 cricket. 

The Australians sprang a few selection surprises: Aaron Finch was benched for the all Sydney Thunder opening combination of Usman Khawaja and Shane Watson, while Ashton Agar joined the Adam Zampa and Glenn Maxwell as the spin options, with Mitchell Marsh and James Faulkner filling the middle-order allrounder roles. That left Josh Hazlewood and John Hastings on the bench. 

While the Agar selection seemed to have backfired - he was despatched for three huge sixes in his only over - Maxwell was inspired for Australia, picking up 2-18, making two difficult running catches on the boundary look routine and creating a run-out with his rocket-arm from the deep. 

Having restricted a fast-starting New Zealand to 142 it seemed to be game on for Australia. Khawaja seemed determined to justify his selection over Finch, and seemed to have perfectly summed up conditions, caressing six of the lovliest boundaries you'll see. 

Steve Smith's dismissal is one he'd rather forget. Having darted down the wicket to get the pitch of the ball, Smith was totally duped by the flight of Santner's delivery and far down the pitch when Ronchi removed the bails. 

Khawaja was caugh short running for a second, and when Warner followed the wheels seemingly fell off. Australia were not able to form a partnership in the middle order and regular wickets robbed the innings of momentum. Even so, it got close, with Peter Nevill stroking a six in the final over to keep the Australians in the hunt but Nathan Coulter-Nile was bowled to put the game beyond Australia's reach.

That wasn't the only thriller on Friday, with England's clash against South Africa also keeping fans on the edge of their seats.

Joe Root hit 83 to chase down South Africa's 229 in a high-scoring match that went down to the wire in Mumbai.

Three South Africans passed 50 – only the second time that has ever happened in a T20 international (the other was also against England, in 2007) – and none of them would have expected to end on the losing side after South Africa reached 229.

In reply, Alex Hales and Jason Roy gave England the fast start and imbued the side with belief but it was Root's masterful 83 – full of exquisite cricket shots and no brute force blasting – that dragged them from contenders to champions in a remarkable match.

TWEET OF THE NIGHT

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PIC OF THE NIGHT

Image Id: ~/media/308032ABC8BD4C9EBFA59BECEBFC2479 Image Caption: If looks could kill ... Steve Smith a picture of bitter disappointment following defeat to the Black Caps // cricket.com.au

TONIGHT'S MATCHES

There's only one match on tonight, but what a match it is! India v Pakistan. At Eden Gardens in Kolkata. With some 70,000 raving supporters in the stadium and a billion or more watching on television this is an absolute must-watch sporting event.

AUSTRALIA'S WOMEN

Meg Lanning shrugged off a bout of food poisoning to see the Southern Stars home after a serious scare against South Africa.

The Southern Stars captain missed the toss and half of South Africa's innings as she battled the effects of the sudden illness but eventually strode out at No.6 to join Alex Blackwell in an unbeaten, match-winning partnership that saw Australia reach their target of 103 with six wickets and nine balls to spare.

Lauren Cheatle and Ellyse Perry took 2-13 apiece in the victory. 

The Southern Stars will remain in Nagpur for their second World T20 clash, against an in-form New Zealand side coming off emphatic wins against Sri Lanka and Ireland.

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INNINGS OF THE TOURNAMENT

England thought their 182 in Mumbai was about par. Chris Gayle made it look decidedly short. The big-hitting Jamaican smashed 11 sixes, set a new world record for the number of T20 international career sixes, became the first man to score two World T20 centuries and put England's future in the tournament in grave doubt. After 48 balls, Gayle danced off a winner with an unbeaten century to his name.

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