Ronnie Jackson and Jonathan Gale hit fifties as England’s Learning Disability side secured the gold medal at the INAS Global Games with victory over Australia at Allan Border Field, Brisbane.
Captain Chris Jackson lost his first toss of the tour and the hosts chose to bat first. But England, once again, bowled tight lines to restrict the Australians’ scoring.
The top six Australian batsmen all reached double figures but none were really able to push on to a big score, with opener Boyd Duffield’s 26 the top score of their innings of 126/7.
England’s bowlers shared out the wickets, with Tom Wilson taking two for 20 from his four overs, while Edwards, Kieran McKinney and Kester Sainsbury took one each.
In reply, Jackson set off at a blistering pace, hitting 10 fours and a six in his 22-ball half-century. He fell in the sixth over with the score already on 71. Then it was Gale’s turn to shine, bringing up his own 50 in 31 balls.
Fittingly, Edwards hit the winning boundary to seal the win by seven wickets and secure the gold medal, with the skipper enjoying a fine series with both bat and ball.
Jackson said: “I came out with a positive mindset today. I had a feeling I was going to do well and it turned out that I did alright! I hit a four on ball one and it just carried on from there.
“At first it was a bit surreal to play on a first class ground but when I was out in the middle I forgot all about it and just focussed on the ball.”
Having won the ODI series 3-0, England take an unassailable three-game lead in the five-match IT20 series, with the remaining games taking place on Thursday and Friday
Remaining fixtures
Thursday 17 October: 4th IT20 v Australia – Allan Border Field, Albion
Friday 18 October: 5th IT20 v Australia – Allan Border Field, Albion
Saturday 19 October: INAS GLOBAL GAMES CLOSING CEREMONY
