Will Jacks the hero again as England fight back to win T20 World Cup thriller

Colombo, Sri Lanka – Another nerve-shredding finish, another match turned on its head by Will Jacks. England’s low-profile insurance policy produced the most high-profile intervention yet, snatching a four-wicket victory over New Zealand that clinched top spot in Group Two and stretched their T20 record to 16 wins from 18 since Harry Brook became captain.

Jacks, officially the team’s sixth bowler and batting at seven, walked in at 100 for five with 60 still required from 33 balls. Within minutes he had reverse-swept Ish Sodhi for four, then dismantled Glenn Phillips’s off-spin for 22 in a single over: a slog-swept six, a drilled four and two punishing pulls that left 21 to get off the last two overs.

Even the denouement carried his fingerprints. A top-ed pull ricocheted off his helmet and raced for four; moments later he dabbed a single to seal a win that felt both chaotic and inevitable. His unbeaten 32 from 14 deliveries earned a fourth Player-of-the-Match award of the tournament and edged him closer to Sam Curran’s 2022 feat of morphing from squad option to player of the competition.

With the ball Jacks had already done his part, exploiting a worn surface for two for 23. Finn Allen holed out to midwicket; Glenn Phillips was castled by a delicious arm-ball from round the wicket. Six of his seven wickets in the competition are now right-handers, testament to height, drift and a captain willing to gamble on 16 overs of spin – an England T20 record.

Rehan Ahmed, parachuted in for Jamie Overton, proved the perfect foil. A googly first ball removed Rachin Ravindra, and his final-over nerves held: 10 runs, trophy still intact. Then he batted like the net sessions that had prompted Brendon McCullum to radio the dressing-room plea: “Tell Reh to bat like Sehwag.” A second-ball straight six off Phillips and a nerveless loft over long-off in the penultimate over were worth 19 not out from seven balls and 44 priceless runs in 16 deliveries alongside Jacks.

The triumph was not without blemish. Jos Buttler fell for a golden duck, Brook chipped his first ball against Phillips to long-off, and England’s spinners squeezed them for much of the chase. Yet Brook insisted the rut will awaken something special from a player he calls “the best white-ball cricketer England has produced”.

New Zealand, who had manoeuvred cleverly through Ravindra, Santner and Phillips, were left to regret a missed opportunity to defend 160 on a turning pitch. Their consolation is academic: England head to Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on Thursday, 5 March, for a semi-final likely to be against hosts India if the favourites overcome West Indies on Sunday.

Perfection has eluded Brook’s side all tournament; escapology has not. In a format decided by thin margins, England have perfected the art of living on the edge, and no one balances that edge more precariously – or more brilliantly – than Will Jacks.