England are in a precarious position at the T20 World Cup after a crushing defeat against Scotland in Barbados before losing to Australia at the same venue.
Here's the story from Saturday's loss to Bridgetown, including team selection, power play errors, how much conflict the defending champions really have, and more.
England need a win and hope as a place in the Super 8 is under threat.
Qualification for the Super 8 is no longer in England's hands.
Big wins over Oman and Namibia in their last two Group B games in Antigua could be enough. They are tied on five points with Scotland and there is a distinct possibility that qualifying will come down to net goalscoring.
Group B table where everyone played twice
But if Scotland win their remaining two games – against Oman a week later on Sunday and against Australia – and Australia take on Namibia in between, England will be cheering as they are unable to overhaul their Ashes rivals or their nearest neighbours.
Jos Buttler's men suffered a group stage exit when they embarked on their defense of the 50-over World Cup in India last autumn and will now struggle to avoid a similar fate in the 20-over jamboree. There is no room for mistakes.
England lost to Ireland in the 2022 T20 World Cup and all hope was not lost as they went on to win the title. “Sometimes it is better to have our backs against the wall,” said all-rounder Moeen Ali. Fans will hope he's right.
Defending champion punished on power play
If you pinpoint where England lost their match against Australia, you can instantly see their opponents' first five overs.
Australia's David Warner hits 39 off 16 balls against England.
David Warner (39 off 16) and Travis Head (35 off 18) scored 70 runs with a sustained six at the short leg side boundary courtesy of Mark Wood's quick delivery and part-time spinner Will Jacks' off-break. Recorded. Following Moeen's three-run open over, the second over bowled by Jacks was bowled out for 22 and the fourth over, brought down by Wood, suffered the same fate.
Sky Sports Cricket's Nasser Hussain said:Australia dominated England and it was a complete team performance. Even with that brief perimeter, a total of 201 was too many for that stadium.
“The decision to bowl the Jacks backfired, but I didn't like how they were too slow to move to slow balls and cutters. I saw them obsessed with blowing away opponents with pace and I think it was the face-off pitches that went fast. “I can't adapt.”
Mark Wood's first over in the fourth match against Australia roared for 22 hours.
Hussain's fellow expert Michael Atherton added: “I thought the decision to bowl Jacks was strange in some respects as England were pacing their line-up with Wood and Archer and Jacks was inexperienced and off-form – a fairly floaty spinner playing a left-hander. “It was successful against our opponent, but it was a high-risk strategy and cost us 22 points.”
Moeen said: “We eventually adapted but we were a little behind. It was almost too late or a couple of balls late. And we always allowed boundaries at the beginning and end of the over and that set us back. I think we lacked discipline a little bit.”
Should England have chosen Topley?
Both Atherton and Hussain said before the Australia game that they would have chosen left-arm seam bowler Reece Topley, who has a great ability to send ball cutters up the pitch from high height and swing at the new ball.
His record against left-handers is also excellent.
You wouldn't think England made the mistake of leaving him on the sideline, first as his teammates got him into trouble on the powerplay and then as Australian players Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood restricted England with face-off balls. I couldn't.
Did England miss Reece Topley against Australia?
Hussain continued: “Topley is a better choice for Barbados and these conditions than a faster, slipperier bowler like Wood. If I'm batting here, I want speed on the ball, not slowing it down.
“When Stoinis, Cummins and Hazelwood rolled their fingers next to the ball in England’s innings, the batsmen could not avoid it.”
Treble Hunting Aussies Show Their Class
Australia, who came into the contest having lost six of their last seven T20Is against England, are two-thirds away from holding three ICC trophies simultaneously after winning the 2023 World Test Championship and more than 50 World Cup titles.
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Adam Zampa scored 73 runs in 7 overs before checking England's chase with the wickets of Jos Buttler and Phil Salt.
In the T20 World Cup, captaincy may be different. Mitchell Marsh is led by Pat Cummins. But the ruthless efficiency of the tournament remains. The aforementioned seamers are doing their bit after leg-spinner Adam Zampa put together a 73-run opening partnership. Butler and Phil Salt.
Warner and Head quickly figured out where to attack England with the bat, starting with Collaring Jacks. “Australia showed why they are feared as a team of the tournament,” Atherton added.
It wouldn't be a surprise at all if they returned to Barbados for the final on June 29th. But England have a huge amount of work to do to get there.
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