England captain Harry Brook has sent a strong warning to rivals after his team dismantled South Africa with a record-breaking performance in the T20 clash at Old Trafford on Friday. Riding on Phil Salt’s breathtaking 141 not out, the highest individual T20I score for England, the hosts piled up a colossal 304-2 before bowling the Proteas out for just 158, sealing a thumping 146-run victory.
Salt’s innings, marked by eight sixes and 15 fours, combined with skipper Jos Buttler’s 83 off 36 balls, yielded England’s third-highest total in men’s T20 history. The pair smashed 18 sixes and 30 boundaries overall, making it England’s largest-ever winning margin by runs in T20Is.
“With the batting lineup we’ve got, there aren’t many heights we can’t reach,” Harry Brook said after the game. “Every must-win match from here is valuable preparation ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026.”
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South Africa, hoping to exploit early moisture, elected to bowl, but England’s openers blew the plan apart. Salt dispatched Marco Jansen’s opening deliveries to the boundary before Buttler took charge. Buttler’s half-century came in just 18 balls, the third-fastest by an Englishman, while Salt stormed past Liam Livingstone’s record, reaching 50 in 19 balls. By the end of the powerplay, England had blasted their way to 100 runs, only the third time this has happened in T20I history.
Salt carried his bat to finish unbeaten on 141 from 60 balls, comfortably surpassing England’s previous best individual score of 119. The landmark 300 came in the final over, aided by a Kagiso Rabada no-ball.
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The bowlers then did the rest, with Jofra Archer (3-25), Sam Curran (2-11), and Will Jacks dismantling South Africa’s chase. Brook praised his squad’s depth and competition for places, stressing the importance of building momentum.
“There are phenomenal players in this group,” he said. “Every game gives us lessons, but our aim is simple — to keep winning and take this confidence into the World Cup.”
