Pallekele, February 24 Skipper Harry Brook played the most defining innings of his T20 career, smashing a 51-ball 100 to propel England into the semifinals of the T20 World Cup with a narrow two-wicket victory over Pakistan.
Chasing a target of 165 on a slightly difficult surface, England were 35 for 3 and then 58 for 4 before Brook almost single-handedly carried them through, with the two-time champions winning by five balls to spare.
Brook's innings was not only his best individual score in T20Is but also the highest by an England captain in the history of the T20 World Cups. England have now reached their fifth straight T20 World Cup semi-final and are the first to qualify in this edition.
Brook, batting at No. 3 for the first time, showed admirable cricketing smarts during an innings that had 10 fours and four sixes, as he meticulously targeted his opponents.
He did not take any undue risks against Usman Tariq (2/31 in 4 overs) and remained composed even as Shaheen Shah Afridi (4/30) wreaked havoc in his opening spell, during which he claimed three wickets.
Brook completed his maiden T20I century with a six and a chipped boundary over mid-off before getting bowled trying to go for a third big hit against Afridi. By then, he had ensured a last four berth for England and received a warm handshake from the Pakistan pacer.
The hallmark of Brook's innings was how he attacked spinners Saim Ayub, Mohammed Nawaz, and Shadab Ahmed. His footwork – both front and back – was impeccable, and he made full use of the large ground, running 13 twos after pushing the ball to the vacant areas in the deep.
Brook teed off with a 17-run over off left-arm spinner Nawaz, which included a six and two boundaries. One of the shots of the match certainly was the inside-out slash that sailed over cover and point. The turn of wrist was deliberate and the shot was breathtaking.
While mystery spinner Tariq got Tom Banton, Pakistan skipper Salman Ali suddenly got Shahdab Ahmed back into the attack whom Brook promptly dispatched down the ground.
Tariq came for his second spell and once again got rid of Sam Curran, but England were 103 for 5, and Brook found an able ally in Will Jacks (28 off 23 balls) as they added 52 in 5.1 overs.
The match as a contest was over in Tariq's final over when he bowled one bad half tracker which was pulled over square leg fence and got a boundary off the next ball, putting the bowler on the ropes.
Once Brook fell, Nawaz got Jacks and Jamie Overton, but Jofra Archer pulled the first ball off Salman Ali's final over for a boundary to take England into the last four stage.
Agha's captaincy left a lot to be desired, as a spinner like Saim Ayub would have troubled the tail-enders more.
Earlier, Sahibzada Farhan continued his fine form with yet another half-century as Pakistan scored a competitive 164 for 9 on a sluggish surface.
Farhan scored 63 off 45 balls, and his knock was laced with seven fours and two sixes against the English spinners, who were on target for the better part of the Pakistan innings.
Left-arm spinner Liam Dawson was the pick of the England bowlers with 3 for 24, and he also didn't let Pakistan reach the 175-run target with back-to-back breakthroughs in the 18th over.
