After winning the toss, Steven Smith asked England to bat first. The English openers were equal to task as they put up a 113 run opening stand. After a mercurial innings, Moeen Ali got out in the 18th over in attempting an aerial shot off Faulkner. Instead, he only succeeded in scooping the ball to the short cover area, where substitute fielder Xavier Doherty held a well-judged catch. But England continued to build the innings even after they lost James Taylor in the 23rd over. The third wicket stand between Ian Bell and Joe Root was worth 121 runs and England were comfortably placed at 253/3, when Bell got out for a superb 141 scored off 125 balls with 15 fours and 11 sixes. Root went on until the scoreboard read 275/4 in the 45th over. Captain Eoin Morgan went for a duck and the last four wickets fell in a heap for the addition of just 28 runs. Regardless, England posted a very challenging 303/8.
When Australia came on to chase 304, Aaron Finch and Shaun Marsh opened in the innings as David Warner was absent from the squad. The openers did well to pile up 76 for the first wicket. Steven Smith came at the fall of Finch’s wicket but he saw the backs of Shaun Marsh and Cameron white at the same score of 92. But Glenn Maxwell was good company for the stand-in captain and the two added 69 for the fourth wicket. After Maxwell’s departure, Smith had James Falkner giving him company. One more useful stand for 55 runs meant Australia going to 216/5 as Faulkner departed. In came Brad Haddin and in the next 10 overs, Smith and Haddin brought Australia at the threshold of victory. Australians were in great position at 295/5 after 47 overs, requiring just 9 runs from the remaining 18 balls.
Suddenly, things began to worsen for Australia as Haddin got out in the 48th over. Smith took a single off the fourth delivery and Moises Henriques ran for another off the last ball. With Henriques on strike in the 49th over and Australia needing 5 off 12, it was still Australia’s game. But Henriques played four dot-balls to create insurmountable tension in the Australian dressing rooms. In between, a couple was scored off the fourth ball and when they took a single off the last ball, Henriques came back to face the last six deliveries from Chris Woakes. With two runs needed, England didn’t allow Henriques to penetrate the field as Smith watched helplessly from the other end. Of the third ball of the 50th over, Henriques attempted a suicidal single and Taylor’s direct throw broke the stumps at the bowlers end with Henriques miles away. It is debatable whether Henriques’ run out was a boon for Australia or not, but that brought Smith to the batting end. The captain didn’t hesiatate to run for a single because that brought the scores level with two balls left. New man Mitchell Starc took a single of the fifth delivery and Australia won by 3 wickets with one ball left.