Harry Brook Shines as England BEAT Pakistan to Enter T20 World Cup Semi-Finals

Oh my god, guys, the T20 World Cup is getting SO EXCITING I can’t even breathe! England just played Pakistan in Kandy, and it was a THRILLER! Harry Brook scored a MAGIC century – 100 runs in just 51 balls – and England won by 2 wickets with 5 balls left! And guess what? England is now the FIRST team to qualify for the semi-finals! Let me tell you everything that happened!

What Happened in the Match?

So on Tuesday, England and Pakistan played their Super 8 match at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Kandy. Pakistan won the toss and decided to BAT first. They made 164 runs for 9 wickets in 20 overs. Then England chased 165 runs and reached in 19.1 overs with 2 wickets left! SO CLOSE!

England become the first team to punch their ticket for the #T20WorldCup 2026 semi-finals 🎫 pic.twitter.com/XhUNKLui2S
— ICC (@ICC) February 24, 2026

Pakistan’s Batting – Sahibzada Farhan Shines Again!

Pakistan batted first, and their opener Sahibzada Farhan was the STAR! He scored 63 runs from 45 balls with 7 fours and 2 sixes! That’s his THIRD half-century in the tournament! He is now the TOP run-scorer in the whole World Cup with 283 runs! Wow!

Babar Azam scored 25 runs from 24 balls. Fakhar Zaman madea quick 25 runs from 16 balls with 2 sixes! Shadab Khan hit 23 runs from just 11 balls at the end with 4 fours!

But Pakistan kept losing wickets regularly! They went from 122/3 to 164/9 – lost 6 wickets for only 42 runs!

England’s Bowling – Dawson Was SUPER!

England’s bowlers did a GREAT job! Liam Dawson was the BEST – he took 3 wickets for only 24 runs in 4 overs!

Jamie Overton took 2 wickets for 26 runs. Jofra Archer also took 2 wickets for 32 runs. They didn’t let Pakistan score big!

England’s Chase – Brook’s MAGIC Century!

Now comes the BEST part! England needed 165 runs to win. But OH NO! First ball of innings – Phil Salt out for ZERO! Shaheen Afridi bowled him! GOLDEN DUCK!

Then Shaheen got Jos Buttler for 2 runs and Jacob Bethell for 8 runs! England was 35/3 in 4.5 overs! Pakistan fans were going CRAZY!

But then… HARRY BROOK happened!

Brook played the MOST AMAZING innings ever! He scored 100 runs from just 51 balls with 10 fours and 4 sixes! He became the FIRST captain in T20 World Cup history to score a century!

Sam Curran helped with 16 runs. Will Jacks scored 28 runs from 23 balls. Brook and Jacks added 52 runs together!

When Brook reached his century, he hit Shaheen for a six and then a four! 90 to 100 in TWO balls! Then the next ball, Shaheen bowled him – but guess what? Shaheen WENT to Brook and shook his hand! SUPER SPORTSMANSHIP!

Last Over DRAMA

After Brook got out, England needed only 4 runs from 8 balls with 2 wickets left. But then Mohammad Nawaz took 2 wickets in one over! England was 161/8! SO TENSE!

Then Jofra Archer came to bat. First ball of the last over from Salman Mirza – Archer SMASHED a boundary! ENGLAND WON!

What This Means for Teams

After this match, England QUALIFIED for the semi-finals! They have 4 points from 2 wins – FIRST team in Super 8 to qualify!

Pakistan is in BIG trouble! They have only 1 point from 2 matches (one washout, one loss). Their NRR is -0.461. To qualify, Pakistan MUST:

Beat Sri Lanka on Feb 28 by a BIG margin
Hope New Zealand loses BOTH remaining matches
Pray NRR works in their favor!

What Shaheen Said About Brook

After the match, Shaheen Afridi praised Brook SO much! He said:

“In my opinion, this will be the best innings of his life. It wasn’t an easy pitch to bat on, but he took the game away from us. Brook played proper cricketing shots, and he deserved a handshake, so I went to him and shook his hand in appreciation.”

That’s a CLASS act from Shaheen!

England become the first team to punch their ticket for the #T20WorldCup 2026 semi-finals 🎫 pic.twitter.com/XhUNKLui2S
— ICC (@ICC) February 24, 2026

England emerge as the first #T20WorldCup 2026 semi-finalists in a box-office contest against Pakistan 👌

Watch the highlights in Urdu 🎥

Urdu commentary is available on our #T20WorldCup broadcasters in Pakistan and on https://t.co/CPDKNxpgZ3 for the first time 🎙️ pic.twitter.com/fya04DpptF
— ICC (@ICC) February 24, 2026

Brook's Record-Breaking Innings

Harry Brook’s 100 runs in 51 balls was:

Second fastest century in T20 World Cup history (only Chris Gayle faster – 47 balls in 2016!)
First century by a captain in T20 World Cup history
The highest score by the England captain in the T20 World Cups
His maiden T20I century!

Full Points Table After This Match:

Group 2

Team	Matches	Points	NRR
England (Q)	2	4	+1.491
New Zealand	1	1	0.000
Pakistan	2	1	-0.461
Sri Lanka	1	0	-2.550

Group 1

Team	Matches	Points	NRR
West Indies	1	2	+5.350
South Africa	1	2	+3.800
India	1	0	-3.800
Zimbabwe	1	0	-5.350

What Happens Next?

Feb 25: New Zealand vs Sri Lanka (Colombo)

Feb 26: West Indies vs South Africa (Ahmedabad)

Feb 26: India vs Zimbabwe (Chennai) – MUST WIN for India!

Feb 28: Pakistan vs Sri Lanka (Kandy) – MUST WIN for Pakistan!

At the same time, attention has shifted to other global leagues where on-field performance remains the sole focus. Sunrisers Eastern Cape’s strong run at the top of the SA20 points table, driven by crucial bonus wins, highlights how franchise cricket elsewhere continues to thrive amid stability and sporting clarity.

Sunrisers Supreme: SEC Move Top of SA20 Table with Back-to-Back Bonus Point Wins