Kolkata, Feb 14 (IANS) Tom Banton’s unbeaten 63 and Jacob Bethell’s 32 helped England edge out Scotland by five wickets with 10 balls to spare in the 23rd match of the T20 World Cup 2026 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday. This was also England’s first victory against a European side in T20 World Cup history.

Earlier, England opted to bowl on a juicy surface, and Jofra Archer had an instant effect in the second over of his spell, taking two early wickets in the powerplay — George Munsey (4) and Brandon McMullen (0).

Michael Jones and Richie Berrington provided stability to the innings during the Power-play. Jones looked confident until he was dismissed by Sam Curran in the sixth over for 33 runs. Berrington and Tom Bruce had a great partnership for Scotland, putting on 71 runs from just 41 balls for the fourth wicket. Bruce was out against the run of play for 24 runs off 18 balls, whilst Berrington fell for 49 runs off 32 balls, just short of his half-century.

After a spirited late-order contribution from Oliver Davidson, Scotland managed to reach 150 runs. Scotland’s innings then fell apart as they lost wickets at regular intervals, eventually being bowled out for 152 runs in 19.4 overs. Adil Rashid finished with excellent figures of 3 wickets for 36 runs as Jofra chipped in with two for 24.

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 partnership for the third wicket. 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.

Brief scores:

Scotland 152/10 in 19.3 overs (Richie Berrington 49, Michael Jones 33; Adil Rashid 3-36, Jofra Archer 2-24) lost to England 155/5 in 18.2 overs (Tom Banton 63 not out, Jacob Bethell 32; Michael Leask 1-33, Brandon McMullen 1-23) by five wickets.

–IANS

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