England have had an exciting summer of T20 cricket. They have had some dominant wins in Internationals and there are some upcoming talents. So, what has made them a such a successful team in this format of the game? Who has contributed to the wins both with bat and with ball? And who will come in the top 5?
England have been a side in T20s which overpowers opponents with bat and with ball. There have been some stomping wins over some good sides. One example of this is England’s last T20I against Sri Lanka on Saturday 19th September at Old Trafford. In this game, England bowled Sri Lanka out for 124 with top contributions of 35 (28) from Kamindu Mendis, 36 (24) from Pathum Nissanka and wickets all round for the England bowlers. Sonny Baker, Will Jacks, and Jofra Archer all to 2 wickets with Liam Dawson and Jamie Overton taking 1 wicket each.
Then came the batting – it ended in a win by 8 wickets. England reached the target total in 9.4 overs with a score of 126-2. Top contributors with the bat were Jos Buttler with 62 (32) and Harry Brook 33 (21). Aneurin Donald made a good early start in the powerplay with a quickfire 13 (6).
England have played 8 T20 Internationals this summer: 5 played against India, and 3 played against Sri Lanka.
| Game | Result |
| 1st T20I vs India (01/07/26) Chester-le-Street, Durham | India 189-7 (20) No result (rain) |
| 2nd T20I vs India (04/07/26) Old Trafford, Manchester | India 190-7 (20) England 191-6 (19) |
| 3rd T20I vs India (07/07/26) Trent Bridge, Nottingham | England 201-7 (20) India 76 all out (11.4) |
| 4th T20I vs India (09/07/26) Bristol County Ground, Bristol | India 158-7 (20) England 159-1 (13.5) |
| 5th T20I vs India (11/07/26) Utilita Bowl, Southampton | England 257-3 (20) India 201-8 (20) |
| 1st T20I vs Sri Lanka (15/09/26) Utilita Bowl, Southampton | England 254-4 (20) Sri Lanka 135 all out (19) |
| 2nd T20I vs Sri Lanka (17/09/26) Sofia Gardens, Cardiff | Sri Lanka 145-9 (20) England 146-4 (12.1) |
| 3rd T20I vs Sri Lanka (19/09/26) Old Trafford, Manchester | Sri Lanka 124 all out (18.5) England 126-2 (9.4) |
England’s team consists of big hitters and a three-pronged seam attack of Sonny Baker, Josh Tongue, and Jofra Archer, with the addition of Jamie Overton as a pace bowling all-rounder. Adil Rashid, England’s most experienced leg spinner, played all 8 T20Is and took 8 wickets at an average of 27.13 with an economy of 9.17. But the best 2 bowlers this summer for England were Sonny Baker and Jamie Overton, Sonny Baker taking 6 wickets at an average of 7.3 and economy of 3.72 and Jamie Overton taking 5 wickets at an average of 11.6 and economy of 5.27. Impressively, Jofra Archer took the most wickets with 11 wickets in the 6 games he played this summer taking a wicket in every T20I he played. The best statistics of all the bowlers was from Josh Tongue in the 3rd T20I against India where he took 4-28 off 4 overs.
Top bowling figures for all of the England bowlers based on number of wickets and economy:
4-28 (4) – Josh Tongue in the 3rd T20I against India
3-12 (4) – Sonny Baker in the 1st T20I against Sri Lanka
3-32 (4) – Liam Dawson in the 2nd T20I against Sri Lanka
3-33 (4) – Saquib Mahmood (1st T20I against India) and Sam Curran (2nd T20I against India)
3-29 (3) – Jofra Archer in the 3rd T20I against India
2-17 (3.5) – Sonny Baker in the 3rd T20I against Sri Lanka
2-23 (4) – Jamie Overton in the 2nd T20I against Sri Lanka
1-15 (4) – Sonny Baker (3rd T20I against Sri Lanka) and Jamie Overton (2nd T20I against Sri Lanka)
There have been 2 batsmen who have performed consistently throughout the summer for T20 internationals. These batsmen are Harry Brook and Jos Buttler. Jos Buttler scored 347 runs at an average of 57.8 with a strike rate of 185 and Harry Brook scored 399 runs at an average of 99.75 with a strike rate of 216. Aneurin Donald, who came in for the Sri Lanka series had a strike rate of 192 opening the batting making use of the powerplays early then getting out before he could make a big score.
Top scores for all batters are below:
131 (64) – Jos Buttler in the 5th T20I against India
114* (49) – Harry Brook in the 1st T20I against Sri Lanka
95* (45) – Harry Brook in the 5th T20I against India
80 (44) – Jos Buttler in the 1st T20I against Sri Lanka
79* (35) – Harry Brook in the 4th T20I against India
76* (46) – Jacob Bethell in the 2nd T20I against India
70 (44) – Phil Salt in the 3rd T20I against India
59* (42) – Phil Salt in the 4th T20I against India
52* (24) – Tom Banton in the 2nd T20I against Sri Lanka
All of these innings have contributed to quick chases or big scores posted and defended by the England bowlers. But now to make a top 5 list:
- Harry Brook – with an average of 99.75 and strike rate of 216 scoring 399 runs, making England’s white ball captain the best player in the team this summer. Also scoring an unbeaten century 114 (49) in the 1st T20I against Sri Lanka.
- Sonny Baker – Only coming in for the last 3 games against Sri Lanka but having figures of 3-12 (4), 1-15 (4) and 2-17 (3.5), he has made an impact with the ball and will probably keep his place in the team for the next T20 series. He had an average of 7.3 and an economy of 3.72 for his 11.5 overs.
- Jos Buttler – He has scored 347 runs this summer with an average of 57.8. He made the highest score this summer of any English batter of 131 (64) against India in the last T20 of the that series. His strike rate was not anything special, but it was still quite quick at 185.
- Jamie Overton – Similar scenario to Sonny Baker as in coming in for just the last 3 games of the summer, he took 5 wickets at an average of 11.6 and an economy of 5.27 in his 11 overs. Best figures of 2-23 off 4 overs with other figures of 2-20 (3) and 1-15 (4).
- Jofra Archer – Getting wickets in every game he has played this summer, he has taken 11 wickets at an average of 17 and economy of 8.5 in his22 overs. Best figures of 3-29 off 3 overs and other good figures of 2-20 (4), 2-23 (3) and 2-34 (4).
So, what would you top 5 be? The overall stats for all the batters and bowlers are below.
Bowling:
Batting:
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