Mumbai, Feb 8
England captain Harry Brook praised Nepal's fearless approach and also lauded his own team for maintaining its composure under pressure after the two-time World Champions survived a major scare to clinch a four-run win in their ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 opener at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.
Defending 184, England were pushed hard by the Nepal batters, but Sam Curran's calm final over, where he defended 10 runs, sealed the win for them with Nepal finishing on 180/6 in a tense match.
"It wasn't easy at all, but thankfully we got over the line. They played extremely well, and I just heard you say that not many teams take out Adil Rashid the way they did. And I thought that they played against him outstandingly. And they put us in a tricky situation on quite a few occasions there as well," Brook said after the match.
Brook admitted that while England felt confident during the interval, he did not expect the contest to go down to the final over. "Definitely, I thought we were in a very good position to be able to defend that. And I didn't quite think it was going to go as close as that, but hats off to the Nepalese team. They played extremely well, and I wish them all the best for the rest of the competition," he added.
The England skipper was full of praise for top-order batter Jacob Bethell, who played a key role in England posting a competitive total, as well as all-rounder Will Jacks for his late assault.
"Awesome. Beth played outstandingly. The way that he was rocking back and smacking the spinners into the stands was really nice to watch. And then the way that Jacksy just slipped into his role there, number seven. He hasn't done much of it, but the way that he batted at the end was where he won us the game," Brook said.
Brook also spoke about England's bowling combinations and the challenges faced by senior spinner Adil Rashid, who was taken on by Nepal's batters.
"We have so many options out there. I don't think Sam bowled until a lot later than usual in the 20 overs. But obviously it wasn't ideal. Rash is getting a little bit of tap there. It's not often that he doesn't bowl four overs as well. So look, it's just one of those days for him, and I'm sure he'll bounce back better," he said.
The England captain reserved special praise for Sam Curran's execution under pressure in the final over, which ultimately helped them register a close win.
"Unbelievable. And we were both fairly calm out there. We knew exactly what he was going to try and do, and they executed outstandingly," Brook said.
England will next take on the West Indies at the same ground in their next World Cup encounter on February 11.
- IANS
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