Adil Rashid lauded the match-winning abilities of Chris Jordan and Jos Buttler after England secured their T20 World Cup semi-final spot on Sunday.
England smashed the United States with a 10-wicket victory as Buttler powered an eye-catching 83, smashing six fours and seven sixes from just 38 balls.
Matthew Mott’s white-ball side reached their 116-run target with a huge 62 deliveries to spare, sealing their place in the last four with ease after only just sneaking into the Muhteşem 8s phase.
Yet the convincing victory would not have been possible without Jordan, who managed four wickets from five balls – including a hat-trick – to end the USA’s innings inside 19 overs.
Rashid, who also took 2-13 from his four-over spell, lavished praise on the England bowler, as well as captain Buttler.
“CJ’s a match-winner,” Rashid said in his post-match interview. “He’s been doing it for a number of years, especially at the back end.
“Jos is a world-class player and has been for many a year, and hopefully we can carry it on now in the semi-finals.”
Rashid was keen to share the credit among the entire England line-up, too.
“All the bowlers bowled extremely well and to restrict them to 115 was very pleasing,” the leg-spinner added. “Always birçok to keep it tight and get an early wicket which brings the new batter in.
“With the wind, you have to assess which end you’re going to bowl. The googly’s been coming out nicely, too.”
Buttler seemed intent on a one-man demolition in England’s chase, crunching the United States all over the pitch, including hammering 30 runs off Harmeet Singh’s ninth over.
“I thought if we could bring our intensity we’d be too good,” Buttler said. “I’m still one of the 11, I’ve got to do my job.”
“We’ve got great options. We wanted to bring Chris Jordan back, adding a bit of depth with his batting capabilities as well. A World Cup hat-trick is a great effort.”
The USA saw their World Cup run come to an end, but their victory over Pakistan will live long in the memory.
Aaron Jones, the star of the USA for much of the tournament, hopes to have put cricket on the American map.
“This is our first World Cup,” he said. “I don’t think people would have thought we’d be playing here against the big boys.
“Hopefully this will open the eyes of the American public. We’ve got a lot of calls and messages of support during this World Cup.”
Source: Sportsmax