England vs. Australia: Winners and Losers from Only T20I
England clinched a five-run victory over Australia in the one-off Twenty20 clash at the Swalec Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.
Eoin Morgan and Moeen Ali made 74 and 72 not out, respectively, to help England post a total of 182 for five. The pair combined to put on a 135-run stand for the home side's third wicket.
Australia's reply was held together by new captain Steve Smith. He made 90 before falling in the penultimate over, and from there on his side lost their way.
The tourists found themselves needing 12 off the last six balls, but some excellent bowling from Ben Stokes made sure England claimed the win.
The two nations now move on to Southampton for the start of the five-match one-day series on Thursday.
However, before the attention switches to 50-over cricket, Bleacher Report picks out the winners and losers from Monday's T20 thriller in the Welsh capital.
Winner: Eoin Morgan
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England captain Eoin Morgan looked refreshed and ready to lead from the front after a month-long sabbatical.
The batsman had been allowed to take a break from the game after struggling for runs with Middlesex. He said ahead of his return to action on Monday, per Ali Martin of the Guardian, "I’m probably twice the man I was a month ago because of the hectic nature of the schedule."
Morgan certainly did not play like a man who had not played a competitive innings since August 1.
He blasted seven sixes as he made 74 from 39 deliveries. What made his knock even more impressive was that the left-hander had walked out to the middle with the score on 18 for two.
The Irishman also reached a milestone. As revealed by OptaJim on Twitter, Morgan is now the leading run-scorer for England in T20 cricket.
Loser: Cameron Boyce
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Cameron Boyce was only selected in Australia's squad for the one-off T20 fixture, meaning the leg-spinner travelled a long way to do very little.
He bowled just the one over in the game, conceding 19 runs as he was hit for two sixes and a four.
Boyce didn't even get the chance to have a bat in the run-chase either, instead watching on as his team-mates came up just short in their bid to reach a target of 183.
Not everyone was sympathetic to the 26-year-old's plight, which will now see him return to Australia.
Vice-chair of the Yorkshire Cricket Foundation Dave Edmundson tweeted out, "Cameron Boyce, 1 over for 19 + return business class flight from Oz- most expensive over ever in international cricket?"
Thanks for coming, Cameron—safe journey home.
Winner: Moeen Ali
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Moeen Ali did not feature in the limited-overs games against New Zealand earlier in the summer, with England instead sending him back to county cricket.
Recalled to the XI in place of the resting Joe Root, the Worcestershire all-rounder made an unbeaten 72 with the bat from 46 deliveries.
He also made an impact with the ball, even though he only sent down one over.
His off-spin accounted for Glenn Maxwell (44), in the process ending a 112-run partnership for Australia's third wicket.
His performance earned him the Man of the Match award, as confirmed by the International Cricket Council.
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Loser: Shane Watson
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Poor Shane Watson—he probably won't want to turn up for a game at Cardiff in a hurry.
The all-rounder sent down two costly overs with the ball, going for 33 runs, and then managed only eight with the bat in Australia's reply.
The manner of his dismissal was unfortunate. A defensive block rolled back onto his own stumps, with Watson only making contact with thin air as he attempted to kick the ball away to safety.
Test Match Special had a little fun at the player's expense on Twitter, "Shane Watson is unlikely to play for the @Socceroos any time soon, missing the ball as he tries to kick it clear. It hits the stumps."
Trips to Wales have not been fun for Watson this year. He played in the first Ashes Test at the same venue, only to be dropped after Australia lost the series opener.
Winner: Ben Stokes
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Ben Stokes held his nerve at the death to make sure England clinched a narrow victory.
The all-rounder was left with the task of bowling the final over. Australia needed 12 to win, while 11 runs would have resulted in a super over to settle matters.
However, the tourists never came close to even getting on level terms.
Stokes' only blemish was a wide down the leg side. He picked up a wicket when Nathan Coulter-Nile sliced to short third man, while he also kept his cool to complete two run-out opportunities.
He had already pulled off an excellent catch in the deep, making great ground to his right to dive and cling on to a chance off the bat of Glenn Maxwell. You can take a look for yourself at the grab, courtesy of a Vine tweeted by The Furred Umpire.
Absent team-mate Joe Root—who is taking a break after his Ashes exploits—tweeted his congratulations to the Durham player, "STOOOOOOOKES! You little beauty!!! Well done boys! What a game of cricket!"
Loser: England's Opening Batsmen
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Alex Hales made just three in England's innings before he was bowled by Australia's Pat Cummins.
The Nottinghamshire batsman, who has been talked about as a potential Test opener, was seemingly beaten for pace by a delivery clocked at 91.5 miles per hour, according to Sky Sports.
His opening partner Jason Roy fell in the same Cummins over, caught at mid-off for 11 after skying an attempted lofted drive.
The Surrey batsman is part of England's squad for the upcoming ODI series against the same opponents, but in eight international knocks, he has managed a best score of 39.
With Moeen Ali–who opened the innings during the Cricket World Cup earlier this year—set to return to the team, Roy could find his place in the 50-over team in doubt.
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