The T20 World Cup held in the Caribbean in 2010, ended England’s long awaited victory in an ICC-sanctioned global limited-overs event. They finished second on two occasions in the ICC Knockout Trophy, four times in the ICC Champions Trophy, and ten times in the World Cup.
Here’s how England finally won their long awaited T20 World Cup victory in 2010:
In the 1987 World Cup, England captain Mike Gatting famously reverse-swept his opposite number Allan Border into the hands of Greg Dyer, putting Australia back into a match that they should have won. And who else than Australia should England meet in the 2010 final in Barbados?
Fortunately, history did not repeat itself this time, as they won a one-sided final by seven wickets with three overs to spare in Barbados. Ryan Sidebottom, who had led England’s bowling attack for much of the tournament, took two wickets for 26 runs to help England restrict Australia to 147 for six in 20 overs.
Craig Kieswetter and tournament man Kevin Pietersen then combined for 111 off 68 balls to put England on the verge of victory, while skipper Paul Collingwood – who was ruthlessly ousted as captain not long after – and Eoin Morgan came together to see them through.
While Kevin Pietersen was named man of the tournament for his second-best run tally of 248 runs from six matches, despite missing the last super eight game to attend the birth of his first child, it was England’s bowlers who deserved to be recognized as well. The event saw the first large-scale adoption of the slower-ball bouncer, and England’s seamers, particularly Ryan Sidebottom, who made great use of the altered angle generated by his left-arm over the wicket bowling, were among its most renowned exponents.
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Except for a Duckworth-Lewis-induced loss to the West Indies, England’s path to the final had been quite uneventful. Despite the hiccup against the West Indies, they advanced through the group stage and then surprise topped their super eight group, defeating defending champions Pakistan and one of the pre-tournament favourites, South Africa. Stuart Broad (two for 21) and Kevin Pietersen (42 not out off 26 balls) led the way in their semi-final encounter against Sri Lanka in St Lucia.
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Australia also won their super eight group and advanced ahead of the West Indies and India, maintaining their pristine record. Their semi-final match against Pakistan was even more nerve-racking than England’s.
Indeed, they appeared to be out when they were 144 for seven in the 18th over of a 192-run chase, but Mike Hussey slammed a remarkable 60 not out off only 24 balls as they hit 53 runs off the final 17 deliveries of their innings to win with a ball to spare. They would, however, fall short in the end against a well-organised England team.
England’s victory in the Caribbean would mark the beginning of an incredible 18-month run for their team. In the winter of 2010-11, they won the Ashes on Australian territory, and then whitewashed India in the summer of 2011 to become the number one ranked side in Test cricket – a position they would hold until the following summer, when they were defeated 2-0 by South Africa.
Despite a relatively poor performance in the 2011 World Cup, their form in One-Day International cricket improved, and they will finish 2012 as the top-ranked side in that format.
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