Salt & Brook set up impressive England win over NZ

Second T20, Christchurch

England 236-4 (20 overs): Salt 85 (56), Brook 78 (35)

New Zealand 171 (18 overs): Seifert 39 (29); Rashid 4-32

England won by 65 runs - lead bid 1-0

Scorecard

Phil Salt and Harry Brook powered England to a ascendant 65-run triumph complete New Zealand successful nan 2nd T20, giving nan visitors a 1-0 bid lead pinch 1 lucifer to play.

The brace mixed for 129 successful 69 balls arsenic nan visitors impressively piled up 236-4 - nan highest people made astatine Christchurch's Hagley Oval successful T20 internationals and England's 5th highest successful nan format.

Opener Salt continued his superb shape pinch 85 from 56 balls, but it was skipper Brook who was nan much destructive successful striking 5 sixes successful a 35-ball 78.

He punished an uncharacteristically sloppy New Zealand fielding capacity - Jimmy Neesham put down a elemental chance to disregard Brook astatine long-on - and rendered nan Black Caps bowling helpless erstwhile successful afloat flow.

Brook's hitting near New Zealand needing their highest T20 pursuit and they seldom threatened, contempt a decent commencement giving them a level astatine 87-2 aft 9 overs.

The ever-reliable Adil Rashid took 4-32 while England's catching was clinical. The hosts were bowled retired for 171 successful 18 overs.

England tin clinch nan bid successful nan 3rd lucifer successful Auckland connected Thursday.

Brook was keen to accent earlier this bid location would beryllium nary talk astir adjacent month's Ashes bid wrong his white-ball group, insisting his attraction is connected preparing for nan T20 World Cup successful February.

Whether that is existent aliases not is irrelevant, immoderate Brook runs are of use to some outfits.

Brook's T20 world grounds is humble for a man of his talents - an mean of 29 and 5 fifties successful 50 innings - but this was 1 of his champion knocks successful either white-ball format arsenic captain.

All his sixes were cleanable strikes complete mid-wicket - 3 disconnected nan rotation of Mitchell Santner and 1 each disconnected seamers Matt Henry and Kyle Jamieson - connected nan aforesaid aboveground his broadside struggled successful nan washed retired first T20 connected Saturday, but which had flattened out.

Salt's sound follows scores of 89 against Ireland and 141 not retired against South Africa successful his six T20 innings since nan commencement of September. He deed 1 six but 11 fours, targeting nan covers and down quadrate connected nan limb side.

Salt and Brook some holed retired successful nan 18th complete aft which Tom Banton's cameo saw him decorativeness unbeaten connected 29 from 12 balls arsenic England romped past nan ground's erstwhile precocious people of 208-5.

Although Jos Buttler deed to mid-off for 4 and Jacob Bethell recovered mid-on having stuck 4 boundaries successful a 12-ball 24, England's T20 batting line-up is starting to return shape.

Even pinch a bully batting aboveground and a beardown upwind helping six hitting, a successful pursuit was ever a agelong changeable for New Zealand.

They would beryllium amended served looking towards nan dropped drawback of Brook for a logic for defeat.

Wicketkeeper Tim Seifert besides spilled a drawback erstwhile Bethell sent a top-edge precocious into nan upwind connected seven, while Sam Curran was dropped doubly earlier ending connected 49 successful Saturday's washout. It is uncommon problem for a broadside usually known for its fielding prowess.

Rashid missed a reliable caught-and-bowled chance but England held onto 10 catches - 8 of which were batters holing retired successful nan deep.

When Seifert and Mark Chapman put connected a third-wicket guidelines of 69 from 48 balls, New Zealand had an extracurricular chance, but Chapman fell to Liam Dawson and Seifert to Rashid successful a illness of 4 wickets successful 3.1 overs.

Dawson's figures of 2-38 were spoiled somewhat by 1 complete that costs 23.

Seamer Brydon Carse dismissed Tim Robinson pinch his first shot and nicked disconnected Rachin Ravindra for eight.

He was awesome successful taking a timely 2-27, pinch Jofra Archer judge to return 1 of nan gait bowling spots erstwhile England sanction their first World Cup XI.

Player of nan match, England skipper Harry Brook: "It felt bully retired there. It's ever bully to lend and to do it alongside Phil Salt successful this caller era is nice. We kept each different clam and composed, manipulated nan section and support them nether arsenic overmuch unit arsenic possible.

"It was precisely what we talked astir pinch nan ball. To get different 10 wickets is awesome."

New Zealand skipper Mitchell Santner: "It was a spot flatter than nan different night. England were smart pinch nan measurement they played - deed to nan short broadside and sewage twos to nan large side.

"When you get a 100-run business successful a T20, it's difficult to stop. We threw different options astatine them but they were capable to support going."