Published: Feb 28, 2026, 01:39 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 28, 2026, 01:39 PM (IST)
All-rounder Will Jacks believes England doesn’t need a ”perfect game” to lift the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title. Having sealed a semi-final berth with a thrilling last-over win over New Zealand in Colombo – his fourth Player-of-the-Match award of the tournament – Jacks made it clear that results, not perfection, were what mattered.
”We’ve won six out of seven games and we’ve qualified for a semi-final. At the end of the day, no one really cares (about the perfect game). We obviously want to play well in there, but we’re not gutted that we haven’t played the perfect game because we’re winning. And that’s T20 cricket, that’s professional sport. It’s also incredibly hard to do that.
”You’re playing against a very strong side who have prepared as well as you, and they know what they’re trying to do and they’re also trying to play the perfect game. So the chances of that happening are very slim. What we’ve done well is, in the key moments, we’ve kept a calm and clear head and we’ve managed to negotiate those well.”
Under Harry Brook’s leadership, they have repeatedly found themselves in tricky positions, only for someone to step up. Against New Zealand, chasing 160, the crisis point arrived again: 43 required from the final three overs when Rehan Ahmed joined Jacks at the crease. What followed was a decisive shift in momentum built on clarity and courage, as England romped home with three balls to spare.
Yet Jacks admitted the nerves were real, especially after watching Sri Lanka falter against New Zealand’s spinners on the same surface at the R. Premadasa Stadium.
”I was nervous. I knew that was a big task. We’ve seen the Sri Lanka game two nights ago on this pitch and how well New Zealand were bowling, and I watched how our batters were finding it having bowled on it myself. I knew that was a lot of runs. So I knew we needed to do something special.â€
The turning point came in the 18th over when Rehan charged Glenn Phillips and launched him for six off the second ball. Twenty-two runs flowed from the over.
”That ball that Rehan hit, a six on the second ball, that gave me energy as well. And I thought, ‘right, we’ve got a chance here’. And then obviously I finished the over 6, 4, 4, and, we were on. I think small moments like that [are] so important and not just the runs but the way it happens, hitting a big six and really showing the bowler that you’re on here and we believe that we can win this is, is really crucial and from that moment I think the mindset changed.”
With IANS Inputs
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