England vs Australia 2018: 5 Talking Points from only T20I

Close on the heels of a 0-5 shellacking in the ODI series, a deflated Australian lineup turned up at Edgbaston for the finale of a disastrous trip. The format might have been different. But there was no end to the visitors' woes as England completed a 28-run triumph in the one-off T20I.

After winning the toss, Australian skipper Aaron Finch surprisingly decided to challenge England's batting might on a typically benign track. Jos Buttler's brutal half-century as well as fiery contributions from Jason Roy and Alex Hales powered the hosts to their second highest T20I total.

Defending 221, leg-spinner Adil Rashid dented Australian hopes with a commendable spell. England overcame Finch's defiance to keep their traditional rivals winless on tour. Here are the five major talking points from Birmingham.

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#5 Buttler rewards management's decision

Buttler celebrated his batting promotion by hammering a 30-ball 61

Ahead of this solitary T20I, England had as many as three attacking batsmen vying for the two opening slots. Instead, the team management (skipper Eoin Morgan and head coach Trevor Bayliss) decided to pair Jos Buttler with Jason Roy at the top of the order.

Buttler, who had flourished in a similar role during the 2018 IPL, repaid the think tank's move by slamming an enterprising 30-ball 61. His striking was so sublime that he overshadowed the regular opener in Roy.

The wicket-keeper batsman's half-century comprised 6 boundaries and 5 sixes. He took a special liking to Kane Richardson and helped his team cross the 50-run mark in the fourth over itself. By smashing England's fastest T20I half-century, Buttler may just have presented the team management with a problem of plenty at the top of the order.

#4 Root ahead of red-hot Bairstow?

Joe Root scored at the lowest strike-rate among all England batsmen

In sharp contrast to their stagnant Test team, England have an embarrassment of riches in their limited-overs batting plans. That Joe Root, with an average of around 39 and strike-rate of close to 130, is considered sedate highlights their abundance at the moment.

Having reached a strong position of 132/3 in the 12th over, the hosts opted to send in Root despite possessing the seemingly unstoppable Jonny Bairstow at their disposal. The technically proficient right-hander scored 35 from 24 balls before running himself out in the penultimate ball of the innings.

Usually, a strike-rate of 145.83 is a reasonable one in the parlance of T20 cricket. However, it has to be argued that it was comfortably the lowest in England's innings. Coming into bat in the 19th over, Bairstow biffed two sixes. Admittedly, the move did not have any sort of bearing on this game. But the think tank may need to be more proactive during the upcoming matches against India.

#3 Maxwell's moment of horror

Glenn Maxwell paid the price for resorting to a horrendous heave

Glenn Maxwell is currently ranked number one in the all-rounders section and number three in the rankings for T20I batsmen. Among all batsmen with at least 1000 T20I runs, he is only one of two (the other being Colin Munro) to possess an average of more than 30 and strike-rate of over 150. What numbers do not reveal is the sheer volatility of watching him bat.

Batting at number three, the onus was on Maxwell to mix aggression with at least an ounce of caution. However, his belligerence got the better of him. Despite scoring a boundary off a free-hit in the preceding ball, he attempted an almighty heave towards the leg-slide without moving his feet. Chris Jordan's slower one ended up clattering the stumps. Legendary Sri Lankan batsman Kumar Sangakkara bemoaned Maxwell's application (or lack thereof) on commentary.

#2 Forceful Finch rattles England

Aaron Finch's compelling hitting kept England on tenterhooks

Even as wickets fell all around him, Aaron Finch refused to cower. His batting partners walked in and departed through a slew of rash shots. At the end of nine overs, the explosive opener had faced just 19 balls and scored 24 runs.

With England's spin duo of Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid manning the middle-overs, Finch knew that he had to take one of them to the cleaners in order to bring his team back into the contest. Showing admirable awareness, he went after Ali. The battle between the right-hander and the off-spinner yielded 49 runs from 15 balls.

Finch's 41-ball 84 was laced with 7 boundaries and 6 sixes. While the effort might not have been enough to ambush England, the skipper's combativeness in leading from the front may just elevate him into Australia's leadership plans for the 50-over format too.

#1 Rashid reiterates wrist-spin potency

Adil Rashid sealed Australia's fate by accounting for Aaron Finch

The growing dichotomy between the effects of finger-spin and wrist-spin might just have branched out further in the shortest format. Akin to Moeen Ali who went for 58 runs from his four overs, Adil Rashid came up trumps against the revived hitting from Finch and company.

Rashid wrecked Australia's middle-order by dismissing Alex Carey and Marcus Stoinis in the space of three balls. When England were in need of a breakthrough at 158/5, he obtained the important scalp of Finch by inducing a mistimed slog off a tossed-up delivery.

On a decidedly docile track with not so long boundaries, Rashid returned figures of 3/27. On a day wherein Buttler's record-breaking fifty guided England to their second largest T20I total, it was the leg-spinner who deservedly walked home with the Man of the Match award.