Adil Rashid took 4-11 as England boosted its chances of reaching the Super Eight stage of the Twenty20 World Cup by bowling out Oman for 47 on Thursday en route to an eight-wicket win in a pivotal match for the defending champion.
Phil Salt then launched the first two balls of the England innings for sixes before being bowled third ball in a dramatic start as England chased the fastest-possible win. It reached 50-2 from only 3.1 overs, led by captain Jos Buttler’s 24 from eight balls.
It was not only the magnitude of the win but the speed with which it was achieved that helped improve England’s outlook at the tournament. It moved up to third in Group B with three points, behind already qualified Australia (six points) and Scotland (five points).
Most importantly, England’s net run-rate that was minus 1.800 before the match is now plus 3.08, ahead of Scotland’s plus 2.164.
England took a point from its first match against Scotland and was beaten by 36 runs by Australia. That made it imperative that it not only won Thursday’s match but won it emphatically to improve its run-rate and prospects.