Sam Curran held his nerve when it mattered most, delivering six balls of ice-cold composure to drag England back from the brink of one of cricket’s greatest upsets. The final-over T20 World Cup thriller in Mumbai had everything, bludgeoning sixes, roaring crowds, and a cricketing minnow that refused to lie down.
England clung on by just four runs in a nail-biting last-ball finish on Sunday, surviving a ferocious Nepal onslaught that had 17,000 fans, almost all supporting the underdogs, dreaming of the impossible.
Chasing an imposing 185, Nepal’s Lokesh Bam smashed a barnstorming 39 off 19 balls to bring his side to the cusp of a famous victory. With six needed off the final delivery, the burly batter launched into Sam Curran’s yorker but could only manage a single. England exhaled. Nepal fell agonisingly short at 180/6.
“I said to Brook ‘I’m backing six yorkers here and I’ll take the hit if I don’t execute’,” Curran revealed after the match. “I think you’ve got to think like that.”
The left-armer’s death-over masterclass, conceding just five runs from the final six balls, proved the difference between victory and humiliation for Jos Buttler’s side.
Jacks powers England to competitive total
Earlier, Jacob Bethell (55) and Harry Brook (53) had motored England to a competitive position with quick-fire fifties, but it was Will Jacks’ late-innings pyrotechnics that truly shifted the dial. The Surrey all-rounder launched three spectacular sixes off Karan KC’s final over, racing to 39 not out off just 18 deliveries to propel England to 184/7.
Nepal takes flight
Nepal came out of with serious intent. Opener Kushal Bhurtel crunched 29 off 17 balls before Jacks had him caught and bowled, but the real carnage came from the middle order.
Captain Rohit Paudel and Dipendra Singh Airee combined for a blistering 82-run partnership, treating England’s premier bowlers like club-level trundlers. Jofra Archer, who had shipped 14 runs from his opening over, tightened things briefly with two economical overs, but the damage was already brewing elsewhere.
Adil Rashid, England’s number one white-ball spinner, endured a torrid afternoon. Airee launched him for 19 runs in a single over, two sixes and a four, as the leg-spinner’s figures ballooned to an eye-watering 0-42 from three overs.
“Not many teams take Adil Rashid down the way they did,” said England captain Brook. “They played extremely well.”
By the time Nepal reached 100 in the 12th over, the impossible suddenly felt inevitable.
Curran strikes back
With 62 needed from the final six overs and eight wickets in hand, Nepal had one foot in the history books. Curran had other ideas.
The left-armer returned and immediately broke the back-breaking partnership, deceiving Airee (44 off 29) into holing out to Tom Banton. Paudel followed shortly after, sweeping Liam Dawson straight to Phil Salt at deep midwicket for 39.
At 126/4 in the 16th over, England had wrested back control, or so they thought.
Lokesh Bam had other ideas. The aggressive batter launched into Archer’s final over, smashing three towering sixes and plundering 22 runs to leave Nepal needing just 24 off the final two overs.
Luke Wood’s penultimate over leaked 14 more, leaving Nepal requiring 10 from six balls. Curran stepped up. Six yorkers. Five runs conceded. Job done.
“It just shows how competitive this World Cup’s going to be,” Curran said. “I played a lot of cricket in India and I’ve never had an atmosphere quite like that.”
Moral victory for Nepal
Nepal’s players received a thunderous ovation as they completed a lap of honour, their gallant effort falling just short but earning the respect of everyone inside the stadium.
“Result-wise, it didn’t go our way, but effort-wise, I give 100 percent on fielding, bowling and batting,” said captain Paudel. “England were also struggling with death bowling, but Sam Curran bowled really well.”
Liam Dawson emerged as England’s most economical bowler with 2-21 from his four overs, whilst Archer’s struggles continued with figures of 1-42.
For England, it’s their 11th win in their last 12 completed T20 internationals, but none have felt quite as uncomfortable.
“Hopefully when we get in that situation in the rest of the tournament, which we definitely will at some stage, we’ll be able to look back on this experience today and take that with us,” Jacks added.
England escaped Mumbai with two points. Nepal left with something far more valuable — the world’s respect.
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