Sciver-Brunt leads superb England into World Cup final

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. This video can not be played Figure caption, Nat Sciver-Brunt reaches half-century with boundary for 53 off 35 By Matthew Henry BBC Sport journalist at The Oval Published 2 July 2026, 21:48 BST Updated 7 minutes ago T20 World Cup, The Oval England 169-5 (20 overs): Sciver-Brunt 75 (47), Knight 58 (47) South Africa 129-8 (20 overs): Brits 51 (45); Bell 2-28 England won by 40 runs Scorecard England roared into Sunday's T20 World Cup final against Australia with a superb 40-run victory against South Africa at The Oval. On a brilliant night under the lights in front of a jubilant and expectant crowd, England overcame their recent struggles in pressure matches in the biggest sign of improvement under coach Charlotte Edwards to date. They wobbled early on, faltering at 23-3 in the fourth over, but captain Nat Sciver-Brunt hit an immaculate 75 from 47 on her return from a calf injury which had threatened to rule her out of the tournament. She shared a partnership of 133 from 90 balls with England's other wise head, Heather Knight, lifting England all of the way to 169-5. Knight, equally as impressive as Sciver-Brunt, made 58 from 47. And while those two provided almost all of the runs, England's excellence in the field was an all-round effort. Their fielding - for so long a glaring weakness - was outstanding. Sophie Ecclestone took a leaping catch to see off Proteas captain Laura Wolvaardt and break an opening stand of 43, and took a second tough chance later to dismiss Sune Luus. Danni Wyatt-Hodge also ran out Sinalo Jafta with a direct hit. As for the bowlers, Lauren Bell and Charlie Dean took two wickets apiece, Ecclestone, Linsey Smith and Freya Kemp one each, as South Africa's hopes were snuffed out. Their wait for a World Cup win goes on but England, although they will be second favourites against their oldest rivals at Lord's, have a real shot at a first trophy since 2017. What information do we collect from this quiz? Sciver-Brunt stars with England almost perfect To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. This video can not be played Figure caption, Heather Knight hits half-century in semi-final against South Africa Having come through the tournament unbeaten to this point, compared to South Africa, who lost to Australia and stuttered through their group, England were fancied for this game. But with Amy Jones having cut to point, the tournament's leading run-scorer Wyatt-Hodge bowled and Alice Capsey pinned in front, albeit with an inside edge she failed to review, they ran into early trouble. Memories of two previous semi-finals against South Africa, both sorry defeats, were looming large. What followed was a sensational partnership from Sciver-Brunt and Knight, who drew on all of their experience. There was only one boundary in their first 20 balls together. They calmed England's nerves but charged through the second half of the innings - Sciver-Brunt's r