Twitter Reactions: England brush aside New Zealand to take 2-0 lead

Jos Buttler-led England stamped their authority against New Zealand in the second T20I match to win by a mammoth 95 runs. With this, the Three Lions further extended their lead 2-0 in the four-match T20I series at Old Trafford in Manchester on Friday, September 1.

Notably, England won the toss and decided to put up a total on the board. Jonny Bairstow and Will Jacks kickstarted the proceedings in the innings as they swiftly got the big runs to remain in command of the game. The pair raised a 40-run stand as Bairstow did bulk of the scoring.

However, rival skipper Tim Southee put a screeching halt to Jacks’ innings as he was sent packing for 19 runs. The Kiwis further returned with the prized scalp of Dawid Malan which left the home side reeling quite early as they were reduced to 43/2.

Just when England saw their innings slowly slip away, it was Bairstow and Harry Brook’s stellar partnership which steered their side towards a mammoth total at Old Trafford. Brook decided to shift gears swiftly and hammered five maximums and as many boundaries in his quickfire 36-ball 67 at a strike rate of 186.11.

Meanwhile, Bairstow too remained solid on the crease as he took the rival bowling unit to the cleaners with his unconquered 86 runs off 60 balls, cracking eight fours and four sixes. In the process, England posted 198 runs on the board for the loss of four wickets.

During the chase, Gus Atkinson took the onus of denting the Kiwis batting line-up as he displayed one of his best innings with the ball. Ripping through the batting order, Atkinson claimed a four-wicket haul in just 2.5 overs as he gave mere 20 runs at an economy of 7.05. 

Meanwhile, Liam Livingstone, Will Jacks, Brydon Carse, and Sam Curran joined the party as they got a wicket each to keep momentum at their end. Glenn Phillips and keeper-batter Tim Seifert got the most runs for their side with their 22 and 39 runs, respectively, as the rest of the unit fell like a pack of cards for paltry scores. With this, England restricted the Kiwis to a meagre 103, runs thereby winning the contest by a massive 95 runs.

Here is how followers of the ENG vs NZ 2nd T20I match reacted on 'X' (formerly Twitter)-