Alex Hales stars as England level T20 series against Australia
Alex Hales`s 94 provided the platform for England`s 27--run win against Australia in the second Twenty20 international today as the two-match series ended all square at 1-1.
|Last Updated: Aug 31, 2013, 11:13 PM IST|Source: Bureau
Chester-Le-Street (England): Alex Hales`s 94 provided the platform for England`s 27--run win against Australia in the second Twenty20 international today as the two-match series ended all square at 1-1.
Australia, set 196 for victory, finished on 168 for nine at Chester-le-Street with opener Aaron Finch -- who made a T20 international record 156 in the tourists` 39-run win at Southampton on Thursday -- out for just five.
David Warner top-scored for Australia with 53 but they were rarely up with the rate as seamer Jade Dernbach took three wickets for 23 runs in his maximum permitted four overs.
Earlier, opening batsman Hales just failed again to become the first England batsman to score a Twenty20 international hundred as he took the hosts to 195 for five.
Pakistan-born leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed, wicketless on debut at Southampton, took his first international wickets to finish with three for 25.
Hales, who made 99 in a T20 international against the West Indies last year, shared an opening stand of 111 with Michael Lumb (43).
That partnership equalled England`s best for any wicket against Australia in a T20 international, with Craig Kieswetter and Kevin Pietersen having put on 111 for the second wicket in England`s 2010 World Twenty20 final win over their arch-rivals in Bridgetown, Barbados.
England, in a mirror image of Thursday`s match, were sent into bat by Australia captain George Bailey.
The powerplay ended with England 61 without loss off six overs after a blizzard of boundaries.
Hales drove a straight six as James Faulkner`s opening over went for 19 runs and left-hander Lumb struck all-rounder Shane Watson high over long-on for six.
It was not long before Hales completed a 34-ball fifty -- his sixth half-century in 21 innings at this level.
However, the first-wicket stand was broken when Lumb top-edged a sweep off Ahmed and was caught behind by wicketkeeper Matthew Wade.
Luke Wright added a quickfire 30 before he was well caught by a leaping Mitchell Johnson at mid-off after driving a Faulkner full-toss.
Hales, off the last ball of the penultimate over, was caught by Warner, running in from long-on, off Faulkner to end a 61-ball innings featuring 11 fours and two sixes.
In contrast to the first innings, Australia lost early wickets with Finch out to his fifth ball when he top-edged a hook off England Twenty20 captain Stuart Broad to Wright at mid-on.
And when Watson, sent back by Warner, was run out by Eoin Morgan`s direct hit from backward point, Australia were 15 for two.
But a stand of 67 between opener Warner and Shaun Marsh repaired some of the early damage before the latter was bowled, heaving across the line, by occasional off-spinner Joe Root.
Warner, one ball after being missed by Steven Finn, then holed out off Dernbach to Hales, sweeping on the cover fence.
And 111 for four became 113 for five when Bailey was lbw to left-arm spinner Danny Briggs for 23.
Briggs then struck again when he bowled Wade for four.
Dernbach then took two wickets in two balls to dismiss Glenn Maxwell and Faulkner before Johnson survived the hat-trick.
England, who won the preceding Ashes Test campaign 3-0, and Australia meet in their third format of the season when a five-match one-day international series starts in Leeds on Friday.
AFP
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.