England registered an important win by four wickets new zealand In the clash of Super 8 Group 2 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 At R.Premadasa Stadium, Khetarama. In a tough match, England recovered from the early setbacks and achieved the target of 160 runs in 19.3 overs and gained two valuable points. England’s win also helped Pakistan keep its hopes alive for the semi-finals of the multi-team event.
Solid start for New Zealand
After winning the toss, New Zealand chose to bat first and started aggressively. Tim Seifert Looked fluent at the top, scoring 35 runs in 25 balls with the help of three fours and two sixes. finn allen During the powerplay, he supported him by scoring 29 runs in 19 balls with the help of three sixes. The opening pair ensured that New Zealand got off to a great start.
However, England’s bowlers pulled things back in the middle overs. Rachin Ravindra Struggled to accelerate and fell on 11 darryl mitchell Could score only 3 runs. glen phillips Took over the innings by scoring 39 runs in 28 balls with the help of four fours and one six. mark chapman Adding 15 runs from 9, and late contributions from Mitchell Santner and Cole McConchie took New Zealand to 159 for 7 in 20 overs.
England’s spinners took a break
England’s spin trio played an important role in limiting the score. adil rashid Delivered an impressive spell, taking 2 wickets for 28 runs in his four overs. will jacks Was equally impressive, taking 2 wickets for 23 runs and breaking important partnerships. Rehan Ahmed Maintained the pressure in the middle phase and also took two wickets. Liam Dawson Taking one wicket ensured New Zealand were never free after the powerplay.
Initial shocks shook England
Chasing 160 runs, England had a very poor start. Phil Salt Fell for 2 runs and the captain jos buttler Departed for a duck, leaving the team under immediate pressure. After this the responsibility of reconstruction fell on the middle order.
harry brook Moved the inning forward by scoring 26 runs in 24 balls. jacob bethel Contributed 21 runs in 16 balls with the help of four fours. Tom Banton played a crucial inning of 33 runs in 24 balls and kept England in the race to reach the required rate.
Will Jacques and Rehan Ahmed seal the deal
New Zealand spinner Rachin Ravindra He bowled a brilliant spell of 3 wickets for 19 runs and turned the momentum in his team’s favor for a while. Lockie Ferguson and matt henry Both also took one wicket each, due to which the match became tough till the last overs. However, Jaques turned the situation around at the crucial time by scoring a decisive inning of 32 runs off 18 balls with the help of four fours and a six. With the equation shrinking, Ahmed provided the finishing flourish, scoring 19 runs off just 7 balls, including two big sixes that sealed the game.
England eventually completed the tense chase at 161 for 6 in 19.3 overs with four wickets remaining. The win bolsters England’s campaign at the Super 8 stage, while New Zealand have been left to reflect on missed chances in a match which remained balanced till the end.
Here’s how fans reacted:
England achieved thrilling win over New Zealand#T20WorldCup2026 #ENGvsNZ
Scorecard 👉 https://t.co/QlnBI0A4Tr #crickettwitter pic.twitter.com/Cby5ZYwUI0– CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) 27 February 2026
Will Jacques, who was the hero with bat and ball for England against New Zealand, won @ramco POTM🏅 pic.twitter.com/SQwRzorKbS
– T20 World Cup (@T20WorldCup) 27 February 2026
Player of most matches award in T20 World Cup edition:
Will Jacques – 4* in 2026.
Shane Watson – 4th place in 2012. pic.twitter.com/q6fydGSZPC
– Tanuj (@ImTanujSingh) 27 February 2026
Will Jacques gets fourth Man of the Match award in T20 World Cup 2026.
We are bringing the award for the best player of the tournament for you. pic.twitter.com/M4k1nTHWUz
– Mumbai Indians FC (@MIPaltanFamily) 27 February 2026
Playing Will Jacques at number 7 is proving to be a masterstroke throughout the tournament. We never expected him to have such finishing skills with the bat pic.twitter.com/E34WDrzYqV
-Gaz (@crictology) 27 February 2026
Will Jacques once again gave an excellent performance..Rehan too 🙏🏻
– Azeem Rafiq (@AzeemRafiq30) 27 February 2026
Will Jacques has 4 Player of the Match awards… for his Watson 2012 esque tournament
– JSK (@imjsk27) 27 February 2026
It’s Will Jax’s winter 🥶🔥
A crucial innings of 2/23 with the ball and 32 not out in the end gave England a spectacular four-wicket win over New Zealand.
England finished 3rd in Super Eight
🤎 | #surecricket pic.twitter.com/OmlTYayrjM
– Surrey Cricket (@surraycricket) 27 February 2026
Will Jacques did wonders, winning 4 main man of the matches from 10 matches. 🤯
Will Jacks – 4* (10 matches).
Kevin Pietersen – 3 (15).
Luke Wright – 3 (22).
Vale player became the most man of the match from England team.👀 pic.twitter.com/a8CKiZBFse
-Abhishek Vision (@AbhishekVisionX) 27 February 2026
Wow innings by Rehan Ahmed. And yes, where there’s a will (Jack), there’s always a way. The best English player in this World Cup. #EngvNZ
– Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) 27 February 2026
Wasn’t it a long time ago that Will Jacks was being ridiculed during the Ashes? He may not be a Test spinner but he is something of a cricketer. Best player of the tournament so far. Certainly for England. #T20WorldCup
– Dan Oganshakin (@DanOganshakin) 27 February 2026
🚨 The History of Will Jax 🚨
– Will Jacques now has the joint-most POTM awards in the T20 World Cup edition! 🫡#ENGvsNZ #ICCT20WORLDCUP pic.twitter.com/NyIaV3yWNn
– Pankaj Daunavat (@pankajmeen75939) 27 February 2026
England won ✅,
Pakistan is still alive ✅
Needs a good day with bat and ball against Sri Lanka
See you in the semi-finals! 🇵🇰🔥 pic.twitter.com/atl819j5k8
– Humais Khan (@Humireacts) 27 February 2026
Rehan Ahmed kept Pakistan’s hopes alive. Great cameo of the tournament so far. #ENGvsNZ pic.twitter.com/VEyKsi2zAo
– Shrikanth (@shrikanthd31) 27 February 2026
🚨Pakistan retained in T20 World Cup 2026.
-England defeated New Zealand. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/QG4FiMZcy9
– Sherry. (@CallMeSheri1_) 27 February 2026
🚨Pakistan alive in T20 World Cup 🚨
To reach the semi-finals of T20 World Cup 2026, Pakistan will have to beat Sri Lanka by 65 runs or chase the target in 11 overs. 🇵🇰🔥 pic.twitter.com/DfiglHqGh0
– Rayham (@RayhamUnplugged) 27 February 2026
