World T20

The tournament proper now underway.

I thought NZ looked at least 40 or 50 runs light, but as G. Boycott says, you can't tell what a good score is until both sides have batted...

India currently not looking too clever on 12/3 in reply!

And they deservedly lost, a classic case of over confidence.

England v West Indies.

Hard to call, but Windies are much better in this form of the game than any other, whilst England will need a dash of luck to go with their inexperienced yet talented side.

Probably fancy WI by a whisker.

Or a country mile. Chris Gayle, we salute you!

Well, another seemingly unlikely, but ultimately well-earned victory for New Zealand.

And another early exit apparently looming for England.

South Africa making Chris Gayle look like Boycott...

Yep, England out As Vaughan said "Who opens with two seamers in India". England that's who! Match lost in 30 balls.

A shame as I thought this side was growing and doing things differently. Not in 20-2- they aren't

To put it bluntly, England have an exciting, destructive batting line-up.

And some county-level bowlers.

This is going to be some finish.......

Can hardly bear to listen!

Holy Crap they have done it!

Phew!!!

What a performance from England.

Cripes, when I saw SA's posted score I went shopping, fitted my new boot seal and generally effed about until the last minute having convinced myself that team Blighty was back in the groove and already sunning themselves on the deck of the ship home.

I switched on with 11 runs to win

and the rest is history.

What an innings Joe Root must have played - how lucky is England to have someone so good in all forms of the game.

Bowlers - report at 6 a.m. tomorrow morning!

Proper England tournament; very poor batting display against a vastly under-rated (but nevertheless second tier) Afghanistan side.

NZ seem to be able to defend small totals, but I won't be betting the house on England.

Good bowling from England so far. 5 down after 9 with less than 40 on the board.

Weird game!

Very odd game. As I said, a typical England tournament. Vic Marks pointed out that at least one discipline has been hopeless in Each England game so far.

The main positives today (apart from the 2 points) were the ability to put pressure on an Afghan side unused to such situations and the fielding.

You've got to love having Moeen Ali batting so far down the order!

Blimey - England through to the semi finals after a cracking game against Sri Lanka resulted in England winning by a whisker.

That was tense!

Really exciting - England are beginning to do this, if not regularly, frequently enough to warrant some admiration for the team and its support staff instead of the raised eyebrow of "oh no. here we collapse again".

Well, its been a rollercoaster so far. The SA result was just bonkers. It is amazing how as an England supporter you find yourself in a situation where (all from memory, so might be a bit off):

* We have scored 227 or something chasing 230
* There are something like 6 balls left, and 4 wickets
* You are still not confident that we can close it out
* The team start to realise your fears by losing a couple of said wickets

Such is the lot of the England fan. I'm rather looking forward to tomorrow's game.

Wow. Daring to dream, just a little...

Hey, if you'd offered me a crushing defeat in the final at the half way point of the SA game I'd have snapped your arm off. Whatever happens from here is a result!

Stunning end to a brilliant final and tournament.

Although I feel for the England side, surely the way the final was won sums up what T20 should be all about.

Breathtaking, with many close games.

ETA: Not too sure about Darren Sammy's abuse of Stokes; sure there's a bit of history there and emotions running high, but winning the game and tournament should do all the talking needed. Detracts from the superb performance by the West Indies...

It was an astonishing last over. I thought we had it won!

But that was without Brathwaite. Stokes first ball was poor, but the others were OK and just got punished. What can he do?

It was just WIs day. U19, women's and men's. Congratulations to them all.

That last over was a shocker! I mean, it was great hitting by Braithwaite but I reckon even I would've had a chance at hitting those pies for six!

Still, it was a top effort by England to make it all the way to the final

All through the tournament, England's bowlers struggled to match the astonishing skills of the batsmen. However, in the semi-final, Jordan and Stokes both performed superbly and looked as though they had found some special form.
You could argue that Jordan should have bowled the final over, but West Indies might only have needed 3 off it.
Stokes always wants to be involved and has a heart as big as a house. Putting himself on the line to bowl that over - can you imagine the pressure?
So, I'm not surprised that he didn't bowl the finest over ever. On the other hand, Brathwaite was astonishing - his performance must have completely scrambled Stokes' head!