Liam Livingstone had been dropped from England’s ODI squad, but he had to remind everyone of his caliber once again. In yesterday’s second T20I in Cardiff, Livingstone delivered the performance that England fans long to see.
Chasing Australia’s 193 for 6, England was in trouble at 79 for 3 after 8.2 overs. However, Livingstone emerged as the hero, guiding England to a 3-wicket victory with six balls to spare.
Another player to note was Jacob Bethell, playing in just his second T20I. Phil Salt (39 off 23 balls) was dismissed in the 9th over, trying to hit Australia’s part-time spinner Matthew Short. From there, Bethell and Livingstone built a crucial 90-run partnership off 47 balls for the fourth wicket. Both played equal parts in the stand—Livingstone scoring 44 off 23 balls and Bethell matching him with 44 off 24.
Bethell was dismissed for 44 on the first ball of the 17th over, leaving England needing 25 from 23 balls. At that point, it seemed like England would cruise to victory, but Australia continued to fight back. Just two balls after Bethell’s departure, Short removed Sam Curran. When England required 13 from 12 balls before the 19th over began, Livingstone took charge, scoring 12 from the first three deliveries, including a boundary and a six.
Interestingly, England still lost wickets in consecutive deliveries. Livingstone was bowled on the fourth ball of the over, after scoring 87 off 47 balls, an innings that included 5 sixes and 6 fours. On the very next ball, Brydon Carse was also dismissed, but Adil Rashid secured England’s victory with a single off the final delivery. This win leveled the three-match series 1-1, with the decider set to take place tomorrow night in Manchester.
Australia used seven bowlers in the match, with Short impressively taking 5 wickets for 22 runs. He became the first opener from a Test-playing nation to claim 5 wickets in men’s T20Is. Just last Wednesday, Bethell had received his debut cap from Livingstone, who also serves as his mentor at Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred. After the match, Player of the Match Livingstone praised Bethell, saying, “He has been fantastic in The Hundred over the last few weeks. An unbelievable talent with a wise head on young shoulders, and his fearlessness made this special.”
England captain Phil Salt won the toss and sent Australia to bat first. Travis Head gave Australia a strong start, scoring 31 from 14 balls before being dismissed in the 4.2 overs, with the scoreboard showing 52. Several key partnerships contributed to Australia’s formidable total.
Short, who scored 28 off 24 balls, built a 35-run partnership with Jake Fraser-McGurk (35 off 27 balls) for the second wicket. Fraser-McGurk, who hit 2 sixes and 4 fours, reached his first T20I fifty off 29 balls before getting out after scoring 50 from 31 deliveries. In the final stages, Cameron Green (13* off 8) and Aaron Hardie (20* off 9) added an unbeaten 36-run partnership off just 16 balls for the seventh wicket. Together, they took 20 runs off Sam Curran’s final over to push Australia’s total to 193 for 6.
Scores:
Australia: 193/6 in 20 overs (Fraser-McGurk 50, Inglis 42, Head 31, Hardie 20, Green 13; Livingstone 2/16, Carse 2/26, Rashid 1/35, Curran 1/37).
England: 194/7 in 19 overs (Livingstone 87, Bethell 44, Salt 39, Jacks 12; Short 5/22, Abbott 2/37, Hardie 0/23).
Result: England won by 3 wickets.
Player of the Match: Liam Livingstone (England).
Series: Tied 1-1 in the three-match series.
