On Friday, September 12, England hosted South Africa in the second of the three-match T20I series at the Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester. Coming into the match after losing the ODI series by 1-2 margin
and the Protea Men winning the first T20I by 14 runs by DLS method, England came back strongly, registering a mammoth 146-run victory to level the series.
For the unversed, South Africa won the toss and elected to bowl first. As a result, the hosts were put to bat first. The Three Lions on the back of an unbeaten 141 off 60 from Phil Salt and 30-ball 83 from Jos Buttler along with crucial contributions from Jacob Bethell (26 off 14) and Harry Brook (41* off 21), posted 304 runs on the board in their stipulated 20 overs.
Phil Salt breaks Liam Livingstone’s long-standing record; reaches 100* off 39 deliveries in record galore
The English opener Phil Salt, who has been in prime touch off late, was seen bringing his best on the front as he breached the three-figure mark off just 39 deliveries. He further went on to scored an unbeaten 141 off just 60 deliveries which saw his inning being laced with 15 fours and eight sixes at a strike rate of 235. Salt unleashed his prowess, smashing three consecutive boundaries to open the innings followed by a six on the final delivery of the first over.
He continued to hit the Protean bowlers all over the ground and got to his fourth T20I hundred in just his 45th innings off 39 deliveries. With this, he not only broke Liam Livingstone’s record which saw him hit a hundred off 42 balls, he also became the fastest to reach the milestone (45 innings).
During their batting innings, England also etched their name in record books, becoming the first full-time nation to breach the 300-run mark against a full-member nation. Notably, they broke India’s record where they scored 297 against Bangladesh in 2024. The Harry Brook-led side will look to emulate the same performance in the final T20I against South Africa, set to be played on Sunday, September 14 at the Trent Bridge in Nottingham.
