England are cricket's white-ball kings after winning the T20 World Cup final, defeating a gallant Pakistan by five wickets in front of 80,462 fans at the MCG.
Star allrounder Ben Stokes once again proved himself the ultimate big-game player, steering England home with six balls to spare in the face of Pakistan's fast-bowling brilliance.
Stokes hit the winning run to finish unbeaten on 52 and ensure England claimed their second T20 World Cup title and first since 2010. Stokes' unbeaten 52 was far from his best or most stylish innings but it will forever rank as one of his most important.
They are the first team to hold the ODI and T20 World Cups at the same time after their memorable win over New Zealand in the 2019 50-over final at Lord's.
Predicted rain failed to arrive and interrupt Sunday night's blockbuster decider as 80,462 fans turned out for a rematch of the 1992 ODI World Cup final at the same venue.
England were in the box-seat after captain Jos Buttler won the toss and elected to field first, restricting Pakistan to just 8-137.
An explosive spell from tearaway quick Haris Rauf threatened to put Pakistan back in the contest as he dismissed No.3 Phil Salt and Buttler (26) in quick succession during England's chase to have the MCG rocking.
Shaheen Afridi took a superb catch to dismiss Harry Brook (20) and have England reeling at 4-84 but the star Pakistani quick hurt himself in the process and was unable to bowl his crucial remaining two overs.
While Afridi's knee injury was the turning point of the T20 World Cup final, Pakistan teammate Shan Masood said there were other reasons for their loss. Afridi returned to bowl the 15th over, but only lasted one delivery and it proved the turning point of the final. Pakistan No.4 Shan Masood, who top-scored with 38, said they also failed to capitalise with bat and ball around Afridi's misfortune.
Moeen Ali (19) played a vital cameo role with Stokes but was bowled within five runs of victory. Stokes told the host broadcaster:
"I think in finals, especially chasing, if you do all the hard work before with the ball ... that's what won us the game.
"That was a tricky wicket, one that you felt like you were never really in on. There was a bit of bounce.
"To restrict them to 137, the bowlers have to take a lot of credit for that
"Representing your country in world cups is amazing. This has been a good one."
Captain Jos Buttler, who sits alongside Stokes as England's finest white ball cricketer, hailed the 31-year-old's contribution:
"(Stokes) always stands up in the biggest moments, he's a man who can take a lot of pressure on his shoulders and perform.
"When he's still out in the middle, you know you're in with a good chance."
To become a nerveless icon of the modern game, Stokes had to experience heartbreak in a final six years ago.
England were in the box seat to win the 2016 decider, with the West Indies still needing 19 runs for victory from the final over.
But in front of a pulsating crowd at Kolkata's Eden Gardens, Stokes was clubbed by West Indian Carlos Brathwaite for four consecutive sixes to steal an unlikely title.
Stokes made the shock call in July to retire from ODIs, saying he could no longer dedicate himself to playing all three formats for England.
But the English Cricket Board will be trying seriously hard to change his mind for their 50-over World Cup defence in India next year.
Earlier on Sunday night at the MCG, left-arm seamer Sam Curran put in a crucial spell of 3-12 from his four overs, an effort which led to him being named player of the match and the tournament.
The miserly Curran was able to remove the composed Shan Masood, forcing the middle-order batter into a rash shot when caught on the boundary for 38. Masood paid tribute to Curran, who was named man of the match ahead of Stokes for his 3-12:
"He's an in-demand player in this format.
"He's been very clever. He watches the batsmen ... he just doesn't go to one particular, predictable length."
24-year-old Curran also claimed Mohammad Rizwan (15), bowling the explosive opener for England's first wicket of the match.
Legspinner Adil Rashid was equally influential, finishing with 2-22 including the vital wicket of Mohammad Haris with his first ball.
Rashid's next scalp was even more important, as he dismissed dangerous Pakistan captain Babar Azam (32) during an over that turned out to be a wicket-maiden.
Stokes endured a nervous start with the new ball, sending down a no-ball and a wide with the first two deliveries of the game.
But it was all England after that, silencing the pro-Pakistan crowd by taking regular wickets and limiting their ability to find the boundary.
England and Pakistan both took unchanged teams into the decider after peaking at the right end of the tournament.
Key England fast bowler Mark Wood (hip) and batter Dawid Malan (groin) were again left out after struggling with injury.
Meanwhile, Jos Buttler's achievement in guiding England to the T20 World Cup title has ended the arguments over the identity of the country's greatest white-ball player.
Buttler has been central to the dramatic re-evaluation of England from plodding also-rans to pioneering pacesetters and now boasts the glittering CV to match.
On a famous Lord's evening in 2019 he was in the middle of the action in the most literal sense, breaking the stumps to complete a run out that secured a first World Cup crown after 44 years of varied failure.
In Australia over the past few weeks, he has been even more fundamental, moving every piece on the chessboard in his role as captain and pointing the way with a bat in his hand.
Back in 1999, a nine-year-old Buttler was in the ground to watch Indian pair Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid smash a record 318-run stand against Sri Lanka in his hometown of Taunton.
Twenty-three years on and Dravid had a front row seat as head coach while Buttler and Alex Hales smashed his team out of the semi-final in Adelaide.
He is already a fully-fledged A-lister in the IPL, this year equalling Virat Kohli's record of four centuries in a single season, and can command a top billing at any franchise tournament on the planet.
But while the county scene may now be a minor concern in the life of a player who made his first-class debut a year before being named as Wisden's School cricketer of the year, delivering another major prize for England has truly secured his legacy.
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