Oval Invincibles 147 for 9 (Jacks 37, Mills 3-33, Hosein 3-34) beat Southern Brave 130 for 7 (Davies 35, Mahmood 3-17) by 17 runs

"Saqib Mahmood came and changed the game with that set of 10. That was a turning point," Billings said. "It's been a real team effort throughout, probably even better than last year Your career goes past very quickly and these are the nights to really remember and cherish, as a group of mates as much as colleagues. Winning trophies is what it's all about."

But after Evans tucked into Zampa, slog-sweeping consecutive balls for four and six, the Brave needed a manageable 53 off 30 with seven wickets in hand. Du Plooy launched Mahmood past Dawid Malan's sprawling dive at extra cover, but backed away to the following ball and lost his leg stump as Mahmood went full and straight.

Mahmood had the old ball moving both ways and stayed on for a second consecutive set of five from the Nursery End after three dots to Pollard. Fresh from a breather at the strategic timeout, Mahmood went full and straight to smash Pollard on the knee roll, then had Evans chipping to short cover to leave the chase in disarray.

With Australia touring in September for three T20Is and five ODIs, Mahmood's impact will have nudged England's selectors. He has not played international cricket since March 2023 and would not have featured in Sunday's final if Spencer Johnson had been fit, but looked back towards his brilliant best.

Jacks sets Invincibles up

Archer, playing at Lord's for the first time since his Test debut during the 2019 Ashes, looked sharp with the new ball, with Jacks top-edging a short ball into his helmet. He had Malan caught at deep midwicket for 7 and Tymal Mills removed his opening partner Jacks seven balls later for 37, his full toss slipping under the bat and crashing into middle and off stumps.

Sam Curran and Jordan Cox added 46 for the third wicket, but Hosein then sparked a mini-collapse during a set of 10 consecutive balls delivered from different ends. Curran skied to cover, Billings played around a straight one, and Donovan Ferreira holed out to Pollard on the long-on boundary. When Cox top-edged Mills' short ball through to Alex Davies, the Invincibles had lost 4 for 9.

Tom Curran, the star of their 2023 triumph, crashed 24 off 11 balls to keep the innings moving - including one outrageous punch for six over extra cover off Archer - before falling to an excellent catch from James Coles at deep square leg, and Tom Lammonby added 16 from No. 8 in only his third innings of the season. Their 147 looked just above par - and so it proved.