Social media erupts over brilliant Root

Earlier this week cricket.com.au's Martin Smith published an article on his top five individual batting innings in World T20 history. No England players featured.

But after England's Joe Root made 83 off just 44 balls to lead his team to an unlikely win over South Africa - who had earlier made 4-229 from their 20 overs - perhaps the list should be revisted?

Recap & highlights: Epic Root knock sees England triumph

Before you take the poll below, read through the tweets from Root's teammates after his match-winning knock and Smith's initial top five.

Martin Smith's Top 5 T20I knocks

Yuvraj Singh, 58 from 16 balls
India v England, Durban, 2007

India were already flying towards a huge total when Yuvraj Singh strode to the middle of Kingsmead during their match against England in 2007, but no one could have predicted the fireworks that were to come.

Having blazed three early boundaries to be 14 from six balls at the start of the 19th over, the left-hander faced up to Stuart Broad for an over that would change his life.

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He took the long handle to England’s pace spearhead, hammering him for six consecutive sixes and bringing up what remains the equal fastest half-century in the history of all T20 cricket (a 12-ball 50 that was matched by Chris Gayle during the KFC Big Bash League last summer).

Yuvraj remains one of just two men to hit six sixes in a single over in an international match and one of only five players in top-flight cricket.

Marlon Samuels, 78 from 56 balls
West Indies v Sri Lanka, Colombo, 2012

Having chosen to bat first in the 2012 tournament decider on enemy soil, the Windies were immediately on the back foot when they slumped to 2-14 at the end of the PowerPlay, a run rate of just 2.33 per over.

Marlon Samuels had been part of the early go-slow and was 26 from 37 balls at end of the 12th over, the Windies still on life support with a run rate of just 4.

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It was then that the lackadaisical Samuels exploded, hitting T20 star Lasith Malinga for three sixes in five balls and then – despite wickets falling at the other end – went again, hitting 19 from Malinga's next over before eventually falling for 78 from 56 balls, including six of the eight sixes that were scored in the match.

In a final that featured only 238 runs scored and the next top score of 33, the performance of the much-malinged Samuels in the pressure of a tournament decider was one to silence the doubters.

Mike Hussey, 60no from 24 balls
Australia v Pakistan, St Lucia, 2010

When Mike Hussey strode to the crease in St Lucia in 2010, Australia looked to be all but dead and buried in their semi-final against Pakistan.

But with his side five down and needing 87 runs from just 45 balls, Hussey produced an innings that had his skipper Michael Clarke labelling him "an absolute freak".

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After a 34-run partnership with Cameron White, the equation ballooned to an even more unlikely 48 needed from 18 balls and Pakistan's path to the final seemed complete.

But Mr Cricket went berserk, hitting 14 runs from the final five balls of the 18th over, 16 runs from the 19th over and then – after Mitchell Johnson had got off strike from the first ball of the last over – smacking 6, 6, 4, 6 to win the match with a ball to spare and spark wild celebrations.

Brendon McCullum, 123 from 58 balls
New Zealand v Bangladesh, Pallekele, 2012

The only man to hit two T20 centuries at international level, this was arguably the best of the seven tons the former New Zealand skipper scored in 20-over cricket.

Coming to the wicket at first drop and with 16.4 overs remaining in NZ's innings, the right-hander began relatively slowly by his normally explosive standards.

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It took him a sedate 18 balls to reach 30; he needed another 33 deliveries to reach his century.

But the biggest explosion would come after he raised his bat, the Black Caps star going 6, 1, 2, 6, 1, 6 following his hundred, hitting 11 fours and seven sixes in total before he perished from the final ball of the innings having powerd his team to 191.

Chris Gayle, 117 from 57 balls
West Indies v South Africa, Johannesburg, 2007

It took only 90 minutes of the first ever World T20 match for all of South Africa's nightmares about major tournaments to come flooding back, and another 90 minutes for them to be quickly erased (albeit temporarily).

After Graeme Smith sent the West Indies into bat in the opening match of the inaugural tournament, Chris Gayle savaged a brilliant century to stun the packed Wanderers crowd and leave the Proteas skipper to ponder whether he'd made a terrible mistake.

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Gayle hit a then T20 record of 10 sixes and seven fours, bringing up his century midway through the 15th over and mercifully departing with 20 balls still remaining.

But Smith had no need to worry as Herschelle Gibbs (90no from 55 balls) and Justin Kemp (46no from 22 balls) – plus an astonishing 23 wides from the West Indies – guided the home side to an extraordinary win with 14 balls and eight wickets to spare.