A rollicking, unbeaten stand between England skipper Jos Buttler and opening batter Alex Hales helped England defeat India by 10 wickets in the second semifinal of the T20 World Cup in Adelaide on Thursday.
Fifties from Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya and superstar batter Virat Kohli had earlier taken India to 168/6 in 20 overs after England captain Jos Buttler won the toss and asked them to bat first. India's bowlers had no answer to Hales and Buttler who muscled England to 170/0 in just 16 overs.
England will now play Pakistan -- who beat New Zealand in the first semifinal -- at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Sunday's final. England, who are the 50-over World Champions, are looking to add to their sole T20 crown won in 2010.
Of the two finalists, Pakistan lost to Zimbabwe and England to Ireland, reminding the world and the ICC that associate nations do belong in the mainstream.
"That feels a long time ago now," said Buttler after the win. "The character we've shown to get through the tournament since then, and put in our best performance today, has been amazing."
Hales, Buttler send India packing
Hales and Buttler were in top formfrom the get-go. They picked apart India's bowling attack with ease to bring up their century stand in 61 deliveries.
Hales displayed his aggressive striking skills on his way to a 28-ball fifty and never looked back. He stayed unbeaten on 86(47b) with seven 6s and four 4s to his name.
Buttler, for the most part, played the perfect second fiddle, putting away the bad balls when needed but leaving the bulk of England's early run-scoring symphony to his partner. However, he too joined the party after he brought up his fifty in style with a six off Hardik Pandya. The English skipper was unbeaten on 80(49b) with nine 4s and three 6s to his name when his team cantered home.
Hardik's fury, Kohli's calm powers India
A large portion of India's innings was plagued by their inability to accelerate the score. They were off to a bad start after opening batter KL Rahul departed early for 5(5b) after being caught behind off Chris Woakes' bowling in the second over. Indian skipper, Rohit Sharma looked in good touch in phases before being dismissed by Chris Jordan, courtesy of a brilliant catch from Sam Curran in the deep, for 27(28b). India's best T20 batter Suryakumar Yadav tried to up the ante but soon followed suit after being dismissed by spinner Adil Rashid for 14(10b).
Pandya joined Kohli at the crease and immediately accelerated India's score. The duo put on a 61-run stand for the fourth wicket. Virat Kohli continued his fine form and brought up another fifty in the tournament. However, he became Jordan's second wicket of the day being dismissed for 50(40b).
Hardik carried on India's revival and brought up his fifty in an innings that showcased his unreal power-hitting. He was dismissed for 63(33b) in the last ball of India's innings with four 4s and five 6s to his name. Wicket-keeper Rishab Pant's stay at the crease was short-lived as he was run out in the last over for 6(4)
TEAMS:
India: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma (capt), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh
England: Jos Buttler (capt), Alex Hales, Phil Salt, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Chris Woakes, Adil Rashid
Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena (SRI), Paul Reiffel (AUS)
TV umpire: Chris Gaffaney (NZL)
Match referee: David Boon (AUS)
(With inputs from AFP)