England have accepted their chances of defending their World Cup crown are over after slumping to a fourth defeat in their first five matches in India.
The abject run of form has seen the 2019 champions slip to ninth in the table and invited an early inquest into exactly what has gone wrong with a side who were once trailblazers in the 50-over game.
Here, PA looks at five reasons for their current plight.
Lack of new bloodEven the best sporting teams need renewal from time to time, but England’s ODI golden generation has been resistant to change. Eight of their 2019 heroes were back for another go and most look a shadow of their old selves. With the Metro Bank One-Day Cup relegated to developmental status, it has been hard for domestic players to force their way in, and even one of the outstanding players of the coming generation – Harry Brook – has struggled to make the XI.
Waiting for SupermanEngland were thrilled when the inspirational Ben Stokes agreed to end his retirement from the format and it looked a trump card when he hit a national record 182 in his first series back against New Zealand. But this tournament has already passed him by. Having ruled himself out of bowling due to knee problems, he then picked up a hip complaint during the warm-up week and missed England’s first three games. Now, just as he is back and getting his eye in, England are effectively gone.
Powerless powerplaysA major part of England’s success under previous skipper Eoin Morgan was built around their fearlessness at the top of the innings. At their best the partnership of Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow was a fearsome prospect, with the pair’s rampant style giving new ball bowlers the quivers. But Roy was axed on the eve of the tournament, Bairstow is short on form and Dawid Malan builds his innings more methodically. As a result they have averaged a humdrum 58 from their first 10 overs so far, and lost nine powerplay wickets in their five games. The team’s momentum is rotting from the head.
Muddled selectionEngland used just 13 players in 11 games when they won the trophy four years ago but had already used all 15 of their squad in their first four this time. They started off loaded with all-rounders, got spooked so badly that they dropped four of them by the time South Africa came around and then reverted back to their original game plan against versus Sri Lanka. Their most in-form bowler, Reece Topley, was a surprise omission from the first match before injury later ended his tournament, Brook was ditched last time out in a side exclusively comprising thirtysomethings and Moeen Ali has drifted in and out despite being vice-captain. The act of putting a balanced XI together has proved beyond them.
Unforced errorsIt is one thing to be beaten by the better team but another to giftwrap the advantage to your opponents. England did exactly that unforgivably in their crunch clash against the South Africans in Mumbai, where Jos Buttler won the toss and opted to field first in oppressive heat and humidity that left his side with the toughest possible task. He also handed Afghanistan the chance to set the tone in Delhi and paid the price then too. Two run-outs against Sri Lanka summed up their scrambled minds, a chaotic one for Joe Root and a comedic one for Adil Rashid. England have lost 47 of a possible 49 wickets to date, showing just how wasteful they have been.
Greaves hits unbeaten ton as West Indies dominate Bangladesh
Justin Greaves hit an unbeaten century – his first red-ball ton – as West Indies ended day two of their first Test against Bangladesh with a commanding 410-run lead.
Greaves resumed alongside Joshua Da Silva with West Indies 250-5 after day one in Antigua, eventually slamming 115 runs off 206 balls faced as the hosts established a dominant position.
His steady knock ensured the Windies recovered nicely after slipping to 261-7 early on, while Kemar Roach hit a career-best 47 through four defiant hours at the crease.
Hasan Mahmud took three day-two wickets for Bangladesh, including that of Roach, as his short delivery angled in to clip the top of middle stump.
Windies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite declared to put Bangladesh at the crease late on, and there was no respite for the tourists against the hosts' four-man pace attack.
Zakir Hasan fell to Jayden Seales for 15, while Mahmudul Hasan Joy edged Alzarri Joseph for five shortly after being dropped, leaving Bangladesh 40-2 at stumps.
Data Debrief: Career-best for Greaves
Greaves' unbeaten 115 marked his first century in Test cricket, surpassing his previous best knock – a score of 33 versus Australia in January – by some distance.
His strike rate of 55.83 on Saturday, while steady, also bettered his effort of 55.00 during that match in Brisbane. Thanks to his efforts, Bangladesh have a real mountain to climb on day three.
Inglis hails 'hard to stop' Stoinis after ruthless knock
Josh Inglis lauded "hard to stop" Marcus Stoinis as Australia signed off their T20I series against Pakistan in style, claiming a whitewash.
The hosts raced to a seven-wicket victory with almost nine overs remaining in Monday's third match.
After Australia's bowlers had limited Pakistan to just 117 runs, Stoinis ensured they signed off their final white-ball assignment in style, with his unbeaten 61 doing the damage.
Only twice has he bettered that knock in T20Is – versus New Zealand in 2021 (78) and against Oman at the World Cup earlier this year (67*).
"It's been a great week. We've had a lot of fun as a group," Inglis said. "It's been really nice.
"When Stoinis is going like that, he is really hard to stop. One of those sixes was probably the biggest I've ever seen!"
Stoinis, who was named player of the match, added: "Nice to score some runs on a beautiful wicket but credit to the bowlers who kept the total down.
"Yeah, I actually told [Haris] Rauf that this is the first time any of us got the better of him! No, he's a brilliant bowler, bowled well this series."
During their white-ball tour, Pakistan won the ODI series, their first time doing so in Australia in 22 years, but got whitewashed in the T20Is.
Despite the heavy loss, captain Agha Salman chose to focus on the positive effect the experience will have on their young players.
"I think in the middle overs, we didn't capitalise on the start," he said. "But lots of positives.
"The way Usman [Khan] batted, the way Jahandad [Khan] bowled. These youngsters will come good.
"It's obviously a big achievement winning the ODI series, but we could have done much better in the T20Is."
Salt century gives England winning start to West Indies T20 series
Phil Salt hit a superb century as England drew first blood in their T20 series against West Indies, with a commanding eight-wicket victory at the Kensington Oval.
Salt's unbeaten 103 off 54 balls was the highlight for the tourists, who successfully chased down their target of 183 with 19 balls to spare.
The West Indies endured a difficult start and were reduced to 18-3 and later 117-8, with Saqib Mahmood (4-34) and Adil Rashid (3-32) doing the damage.
However, the hosts managed 65 runs in the last 5.2 overs to finish at 182-8, with Gukadesh Motie knocking 33 off 14 balls along the way.
Salt kick-started England's chase with 50 off just 25 deliveries taking them to 73-1 after six overs, with Will Jacks (17) dismissed with the final ball of the powerplay.
Jos Buttler's first match after four months out lasted just three minutes, as the skipper was caught by Motie for a golden duck.
However, it proved a false dawn for West Indies, with Salt and Jacob Bethall (58 from 36 balls) safely steering England to victory.
Data Debrief: Salt completes hat-trick of hundreds as Bethell makes historic half-century
England put their disappointing ODI series behind them, making history with the highest T20 chase at the Kensington Oval.
Salt was the hero with his third T20I century, all of which have come against West Indies in the past 12 months.
Bethell also made history on Saturday. Aged 21 years and 17 days, he become the youngest England player to score a 50 in a T20I.
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