Late Jacks storm leaves New Zealand's semifinal fate hanging

New Zealand squandered a golden opportunity to seal a semi-finals berth as a stunning late assault from Will Jacks (32*) and Rehan Ahmed (19*) powered England to an unlikely win in Colombo. With the chase slipping away at 117/6, England stormed back to snatch victory, leaving Pakistan's qualification hopes alive and New Zealand reliant on Sri Lanka to keep their campaign afloat.

New Zealand opted to bat. Tim Seifert and Finn Allen provided a strong start, taking the score to 54/0 by the end of the Powerplay. Allen hit early sixes off Jofra Archer and Liam Dawson, while Seifert struck Archer for two fours and a six in the fifth over.

On a turning surface, England struck back. Seifert launched Adil Rashid for six but was stumped the next ball. Allen fell to Will Jacks in the following over, chipping a catch to deep mid-wicket.

Rachin Ravindra struggled to 11 off 13 balls before falling to Rehan Ahmed. Glenn Phillips provided momentum with timely boundaries, and Mark Chapman struck two fours before being stumped off a loopy Rashid delivery.

England's spinners then dominated, stringing together four quiet overs without a boundary. The pressure told as Daryl Mitchell fell trying to attack, and Phillips departed soon after. New Zealand slid from 123/3 in the 15th over to 135/6 in the 18th.

A sweep from Cole McConchie ended a 27-ball boundary drought, but the innings never found full momentum. A final-ball six from Mitchell Santner took them to 159/7, but he walked off shaking his head, suggesting the total was below par.

England's top-order struggles continued. Matt Henry had Phil Salt caught behind in the first over, and Lockie Ferguson dismissed Jos Buttler for a two-ball duck in the second.

Harry Brook mounted a counter-attack. After some early miscues, he found his range, lofting Henry over cover for four before scooping him for six. Jacob Bethell found his stride as England recovered to 47/2 at the end of the Powerplay.

Glenn Phillips broke the 48-run stand by dismissing Brook in the eighth over. Two overs later, he took a brilliant running, diving catch at deep mid-wicket to remove Bethell.

New Zealand's spinners tightened the screws, but a 42-run stand between Tom Banton and Sam Curran kept England in the game. Curran fell to the excellent Rachin Ravindra (3 for 19) in the 15th over, just as England looked to accelerate.

At 117/6, needing 42 off 18 balls, New Zealand held the edge. The game turned in the 18th over, however, as Glenn Phillips was carted for 22 runs. Rehan Ahmed then reverse-swept Santner for four to start the 19th and finished the over with a towering six over long-off, reducing the equation to five runs needed off the final over. A streaky boundary off the helmet sealed a remarkable turnaround, with Jacks and Ahmed adding 44 off just 16 balls.

Brief Scores:
New Zealand 159/7 in 20 overs (Glenn Phillips 39, Tim Seifert 35; Will Jacks 2-23, Adil Rashid 2-28) lost to England 161/6 in 19.3 overs (Will Jacks 32*, Rehan Ahmed 19*; Rachin Ravindra 3-19) by 4 wickets.