England bounce back from Thursday's heavy defeat with an emphatic victory of their own over Pakistan in the third T20 international in Karachi.
The tourists were powerless to resist the majestic batting of Mohammad Rizwan and Babar Azam, who became the first opening batsmen to put on in excess of 200 runs at the top of the order.
However, it was a different story 24 hours later as Ben Duckett and Harry Brook put together their own unbeaten three-figure stand to guide England to a 63-run win.
Having lost the toss and being put into bat, England captain Moeen Ali may have feared a repeat of the previous night, especially when Phil Salt (8) departed early.
Debutant Will Jacks improved the mood, however, with an outstanding maiden knock of 40 from 22 balls which included eight boundaries.
Jacks, and Dawid Malan (14), were out before the halfway stage, leaving England on 82-3 off 8.3 overs, but England need not have worried with Duckett and Brook at the crease.
The pair each proceeded to put on arguably their best international performance to date, both players hitting their first-ever half-centuries in this format of the game as they contributed 139 runs from 72 balls.
Brook was the star of the two, contributing a sensational 81 off 35 deliveries which included eight fours and five sixes, but Duckett, too, was exceptional as he posted 70 from 42 balls.
"What a take that is!" 👏 pic.twitter.com/x8fL7lYYwa
— Sky Sports Cricket (@SkyCricket) September 23, 2022
The end result was England reaching 221-3, and although there were naturally concerns that lightning may strike twice, the recalled Mark Wood and Reece Topley soon ensured that would not be the case.
By 4.1 overs, the pair had taken three wickets between them, Rizwan and Azam only scoring eight runs apiece on this occasion, and Sam Curran also chipped in to leave Pakistan on 28-4.
As a contest, the game was effectively already over, even though Shan Masood deserves high praise for his unbeaten 66 off 40 in the middle order.
Khushdil Shah (29) and Mohammad Nawaz (19) kept things ticking over with their teammate before they each fell to Adil Rashid, but Pakistan were well beaten as they ended on 158-8 with Wood posting England's best figures of 3-25.
Darren Plant
