England recover to thrash Pakistan in first T20

First T20, Edgbaston

England 163-6 (20 overs): Knight 49 (44), Gibson 41* (21); Akhtar 2-20

Pakistan 110 (18.2 overs): Shamas 35 (24); Glenn 4-12, Bell 3-22

England won by 53 runs

Scorecard

England recovered from a shambolic start to beat Pakistan by 53 runs in the first T20 at Edgbaston.

The hosts slipped to 11-4 inside the first three overs, before Heather Knight and Amy Jones led a fightback to post 163-6.

Knight scored 49 and Jones 37 in a fifth-wicket stand of 67, before Danielle Gibson's entertaining 41 not out from 21 balls provided a late boost.

In reply, Pakistan squandered a positive start with England leg-spinner Sarah Glenn's career-best 4-12 sparking a drastic collapse from 66-2 to 110 all out.

The visitors finished the powerplay on 57-2, in comparison to England's 29-4, before their middle-order fragility was ruthlessly exposed.

Glenn bowled beautifully, supported by seamer Lauren Bell's 3-22 as England expertly closed out a dominant victory, but their early batting collapse silenced an Edgbaston crowd of 12,241.

Maia Bouchier was caught at mid-off in the first over, Danni Wyatt picked out mid-on in the second and Alice Capsey was dropped first ball before she was caught out slogging for five.

All-rounder Freya Kemp was calamitously run out for a duck on her return to the side from injury before the experience of Knight and Jones calmly dug England out of trouble.

Gibson whacked eight fours in her explosive finish which helped England end the innings with confidence, setting Pakistan the challenge of their highest-ever T20 run chase.

The three-match series continues at Northampton on Friday.

With the T20 World Cup approaching in the autumn, England's top order is an area of concern with its inconsistency, alongside their adaptability.

Star all-rounder Nat Sciver-Brunt was absent but England were crying out for her stability to support the relative inexperience of Bouchier, Capsey and Kemp.

England are committed to their aggressive approach under coach Jon Lewis, but on quite a sluggish pitch and against Pakistan's slow bowlers, they came unstuck in familiar fashion.

They did not commit to their shots, trying to force the pace, while Kemp's run out was an error in judgement, setting off for a single after a misfield when Knight at the non-striker's end did not move an inch.

But, what Knight and Jones expertly demonstrated was calmness and stability, picking the bad ball when the fielders spread after six overs and running hard between the wickets.

Jones miscued a full toss to deep mid-wicket before Knight fell short of a half-century by slicing one to mid-off, but they had expertly dug England out of big trouble.

The side's young talent is promising, but they showed naivety in the conditions, and the partnership should give them a valuable blueprint from which they can learn.

England's top order wobble exposed their existing concerns but also highlighted a much-improved Pakistan, who came into the series off the back of a series hammering by the West Indies.

Knight's side are expected to dominate but were immediately under pressure by seamer Waheeda Akhtar, who took 2-20, and a significant improvement in their fielding.

Later in the innings a few misfields crept in, but early on they looked assured under high catches, and showed impressive game awareness to stay calm amid the chaos of Kemp's run out.

Their batters also came out firing with admirable courage, helped by some loose England bowling but they took on the challenge with Sadaf Shamas' 35 from 24 balls the highlight.

But ultimately England's class shone through and exposed the gulf in class, with the spin trio of Glenn, Charlie Dean and Sophie Ecclestone going from strength to strength as they twirled through the middle overs with relentless accuracy and control to halt Pakistan's scoring.

They buckled under the pressure, as Jones marked her 100th T20 cap with a player of the match performance by adding four catches to her match-winning runs.

England captain Heather Knight on BBC Two: "I think if we are honest the scoreboard flattered us, we did some good things today but we were probably a little off the pace.

"It was desperation to get going, a big crowd and trying to impose ourselves on the game. I wouldn't look too much into it, we want our players to be aggressive, just at the right time."

England leg-spinner Sarah Glenn after her four wickets: "The concussion [earlier this year in New Zealand] wasn't ideal. For me it has been staying patient, trusting my game and not overthinking it.

"I have not had much prep but it was about keeping it simple. We regrouped well - Heather and Jonesy were class, and Gibbo at the end."

Former England bowler Katherine Sciver-Brunt on BBC Two: "Sarah Glenn is such a character, such a team player, a calming presence.

"She had four concussions in the past few years. She was pretty raw coming into this game but came out and put pressure on and came out with a result."