Tom Banton’s unbeaten 63 runs and Jacob Bethell’s 32 runs guided England to a five-wicket victory over Scotland in the 23rd match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the Eden Gardens. This win marked England’s first triumph against a European team in T20 World Cup history.
Scotland, aided by a late push from Oliver Davidson, managed to post 150 runs. However, their innings crumbled as they lost wickets consistently, getting bowled out for 152 runs in 19.4 overs. Adil Rashid claimed 3 wickets for 36 runs, with Jofra Archer contributing two wickets for 24 runs.
England faced a tough start in the chase as Phil Salt and Jos Buttler fell early, scoring only 2 and 3 runs, respectively. Despite a challenging beginning, England’s Tom Banton and Jacob Bethell steered the team towards victory with their impressive batting performances.
In an interesting statistic from the match, England’s batters failed to hit a boundary in the first four overs, marking the 17th instance of this in T20 World Cup history. Additionally, England became the third full member side to not hit a boundary in the first four overs against an Associate team in the T20 World Cup.
Tom Banton’s innings of 63 not out marked his fourth half-century in T20Is and his first in the T20 World Cup. With a strike rate of 160.07 in the second innings, Banton’s performance was pivotal in England’s successful chase against Scotland.
This victory was significant for England as it was their first win against a European team in the T20 World Cup, having previously lost three matches and abandoned two.
