Australia held back leggie Adam Zampa until the end of the powerplay and his performance was decisive in dismissing both openers. With his first ball, he got Salt out with a quick leg break which slipped away. Buttler hit the first ball of Zampa’s second over for a flat six but reverse-swept the next ball to backward point and was dismissed by Wade.
At the 10th over, England were still battling at 93-2. Moeen hit three big sixes and Bairstow swung with all his might. It was the kind of ugly hitting you see when Sunday golfers ravage a championship course. Seven strokes off 13 kept England afloat, but the momentum in the chase was gone.
Zampa did not concede Buttler in his 10 overs against England in the 50-over World Cup and was just as effective this time, taking figures of 2 for 28 in his four overs to finish off Australia’s fine job and make Buttler suffer again.
How much trouble is England in?
Will McPherson
After a tough rain-affected draw against Scotland and a heavy defeat to Australia, reigning champions England find themselves in a precarious position: they are fourth in Group B, with a poor net run rate (minus 1.8) and are battling for a place in the Super Eight stage.
Can England still qualify for the Super Eights?
The short answer is yes, but there is no room for mistakes and no room for bad weather. They fly to Antigua on Sunday, then play Oman on Thursday and Namibia two days later. They need to win both games, and win well, to achieve a better net run-rate than Scotland. Dropping any points will all but guarantee them elimination.
Is there anyone else who could make life easier?
Oman’s match against Scotland in Barbados on Sunday has taken on added significance for England. A win for Oman would see England finish bottom of the group but Scotland’s drop in points could make their path to the Super Eight easier. But Scotland are in good form after their win over Namibia.
Disadvantage
The final game in the group is Australia versus Scotland. The two nations are England’s biggest rivals in all of sport and may be presented with a rare opportunity they will no doubt relish: to conspire to beat England.
If all three teams win up to that point, Australia will already advance to the knockout stage with six points. England and Scotland each have five points. If Scotland wins, both Scotland and Australia will advance to the knockout stage, but even if Scotland loses by a small margin, England could still be eliminated on net points. We’ll have to wait and see how this plays out.
The biggest news for England will be to win their remaining games and hope Australia beats Scotland. It’s not so much that England are praying for Australia to win…