England seamer David Willey will retire from international cricket at the end of the World Cup, unhappy after missing out on a central contract.

The 33-year-old was the only member of the touring party in India not to receive a new deal last week and “wasn’t best pleased”, in the words of Rob Key, managing director of England men’s cricket.

A total of 26 players were handed new terms, with three more on pace development deals, leaving Willey in the strange position of pondering his immediate future while simultaneously trying to turn around England’s tanking campaign.

The left-armer has held up his side of the bargain, taking five wickets in three games and delivering the best economy rate of the six fast bowlers England have used at the tournament.

Willey channelled his growing frustrations in the perfect way in Lucknow at the weekend, taking a fine haul of three for 45 including star batter Virat Kohli for a nine-ball duck, but has now resolved to walk away.

Despite five defeats in six games of their World Cup defence, England’s players have lined up one after the other to praise the unity and morale in the squad.

But, in revealing his decision with three group games still to go, starting with rivals Australia in Ahmedabad on Saturday, Willey’s timing frames his personal frustrations.

Revealing the news in an emotive Instagram post, Willey wrote: “I never wanted this day to come. From a young boy, I’ve only ever dreamed of playing cricket for England.

“So, with careful thought and consideration, it is with great regret that I feel the time has come for me to retire from all forms of international cricket at the end of the World Cup.

“I have worn the shirt with immense pride and given my absolute everything to the badge on my chest.

“I’ve been very lucky to be a part of such an incredible white-ball team with some of the best players in the world.

“I’ve made some special memories and great friends along the way and been through some very difficult times.”

Willey has played 70 ODIs and 43 T20s and England must now decide whether to continue picking him for their remaining games against Australia, the Netherlands and Pakistan or use the moment to move on.

Sam Curran stands by as the most obvious replacement, as a left-arm swing bowler and attacking lower-order batter, while Surrey’s Gus Atkinson has played just once so far.

Both options are 25 and would represent an investment in the future, but England must also balance the need for an instant change in fortunes with a place at the 2025 Champions Trophy on the line.

“I feel I still have a lot more to give on and off the field while I am still playing my best cricket, and my decision has nothing to do with our performance during the World Cup,” he continued.

“I’m sure everybody who knows me does not doubt that, whatever my involvement in the remainder of this campaign, I will give my everything and more! That’s the only way I know.”

Announcing the new batch of central contracts in Bangalore last week, Key admitted an annoyed Willey had been unlucky to miss out.

“It’s fair to say David Willey wasn’t best pleased, as you can understand, being the only one not to get a contract,” he said.

“It’s bloody tough, to be honest. We’d love to live in a world where you can just say we have a pot of extra cash and you can just give him one because he’s coming out here for the World Cup.”

Willey missed out on England’s 2019 World Cup triumph in devastating fashion, named in the initial 15-man squad only to be axed at the last minute to make way for the newly available Jofra Archer.

That could have been the end of his international career but he fought his way back into contention and found a way back in when England needed two separate squads following the coronavirus pandemic.

He went on to be part of the T20 World Cup-winning squad in Australia last year.

A maiden List A hundred from Zachary McCaskie propelled the Barbados Pride to a 48-run win over the Combined Campuses and Colleges in their fifth round CG United Super50 Cup tussle at the Sir Frank Worrell Memorial Ground in St. Augustine on Tuesday.

McCaskie, playing his first game of the season, hit a 116-ball 131 including 13 fours and four sixes to help Barbados post 314-7 from their 50 overs after winning the toss.

West Indies batsman Shamarh Brooks also hit a well-compiled 65 off 67 balls including four fours and two sixes in support.

West Indies ODI skipper Shai Hope was also in a destructive mood, hitting 33 off just 19 balls including two fours and two sixes.

Left-arm seamer Jediah Blades and leg-spinner Abhijai Mansingh each took a pair of wickets for the CCC.

The CCC chase, after a valiant effort, ended in the 46^th over with them being bowled out for 266.

Captain Shane Dowrich, who hit a brilliant unbeaten 102* to lead them to victory against the Windwards in round three, top scored with 86 off 84 balls including five fours and three sixes.

18-year-old West Indies Under-19 batsman Jordan Johnson also showed excellent form, following up 41 in round four against the Jamaica Scorpions with a 45-ball 50 including two fours and two sixes on Tuesday, his maiden List A fifty.

Demario Richards, who also hit a half-century against the Scorpions, made 41.

Off-spinner Roston Chase took 3-56from his 10 overs while Dominic Drakes and Roshon Primus picked up two wickets, each, in support for the Pride who now have three wins, one loss and one no result.

Justin Greaves hit his maiden List A century to help the Leeward Islands Hurricanes secure a massive 114-run victory over the Windward Islands Volcanoes in their fifth round CG United Super50 Cup fixture at the Queen’s Park Oval on Tuesday.

The Leewards posted 293 all out from their 50 overs after winning the toss.

Greaves, who also hit 58 in their last game against the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force, led the way with a masterful 121 off 126 balls including 10 fours and a six while Jahmar Hamilton provided good support with an even 50 off 72 balls, the eighth of his List A career.

Captain Alzarri Joseph and all rounder Terance Ward provided cameos of 24 and 22, respectively.

Pacer Shermon Lewis picked up three wickets in his seven overs, but was expensive, conceding 68.

Leg-spinner Darel Cyrus took 2-52 from his full 10 overs while Shamar Springer took 2-45 from six.

Springer then completed a fine all-round performance with a top score of 58 but it wasn’t enough as the Windwards slumped to another defeat, being bowled out for just 179 in 42.3 overs.

Alick Athanaze got a start once again with 39 and Kavem Hodge hit 38 against Hayden Walsh Jr’s 4-40 from 6.3 overs for the Hurricanes.

Left-arm spinner Daniel Doram provided good support for Walsh Jr with 2-29 from his 10 overs.

Walsh Jr and Doram are now top two on the leading wicket-takers list after five rounds with 17 and 14 wickets, respectively.

The Leewards now have three wins and two losses this season while the Volcanoes have only one win from their five games.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) announced that Barbados Pride all-rounder, Raymon Reifer has been suspended from bowling his slower balls and cutters in all cricket matches until his action on these deliveries is cleared. Should Reifer use these deliveries in a match, CWI reserves the right to suspend him from bowling altogether.

Reifer, Barbados Pride’s left-arm seamer, was reported by the match officials during the CG United Super50 Cup match between Barbados Pride and Windward Volcanoes on 25 October at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.  In accordance with the procedure for suspected illegal bowling actions, the match footage was sent to Loughborough University for an opinion report. The report has determined that an illegal action was used to bowl the cutters and slower balls.

The Barbados Pride are currently fourth in the table with 24 points after their four matches, having won two and lost one, with one no result due to rain.  They are correctly playing their fifth match of the CG United Super 50 Cup against the Combined Campuses & Colleges, which can be watched live on the WindiesCricket YouTube channel.

The semifinals will be played on 8 and 9 November at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy. The CG United Super50 Cup final will be played at 1pm on Saturday, 11 November at the same venue. These will be day/night matches and will be televised exclusively live on ESPN Caribbean with match highlights on the Windies Cricket YouTube channel.

Follow live CG United Super 50 Cup ball-by ball scores on the Windies Cricket live match centre: https://www.windiescricket.com/match-schedules/

Dawid Malan believes it would be unfair for England head coach Matthew Mott to take the blame for a dire Cricket World Cup campaign, suggesting the players themselves “need to take responsibility”.

England arrived in India as reigning champions and among the favourites but have unravelled in dramatic fashion over the past month.

After six games they sit bottom of the table in 10th place, with a solitary win against fellow strugglers Bangladesh, putting Mott’s white-ball role under scrutiny.

Speculation over the Australian’s position increased when Eoin Morgan, the side’s World Cup-winning former captain, claimed the squad seemed “unsettled” and later suggested England “take a leaf out of Baz’s book” – a direct reference to Test coach Brendon McCullum.

Malan, the top run-scorer and solitary centurion in an underperforming lineup, told BBC Sport: “Motty is not the one walking out on the field.

“We are being given everything we need to perform. The facilities and work, everything is being done as it always has been, we just haven’t been able to find a way to get wins on the board. It has been frustrating from a players’ point of view because we know we’re better than that.

“I’m not involved in selection or any of those things, so I don’t know how that works or who is in charge of all that, but as players we need to take responsibility when we cross that rope.”

Malan broadened the focus away from Mott’s future, insisting that everyone involved in the campaign would be feeling the same heat.

“I guess whenever you have a poor campaign there is always someone who’s going to be targeted whether it be the captain, players, coach or selectors,” he said.

“People’s jobs being scrutinised and players’ careers being scrutinised. We have a hell of a lot to play for in the last three. The only way we can get the noise off the coach is by performing. And it is up to us next three games to win these games and take that narrative away because we have not performed.

“I know people say that a lot when their backs are against the wall but genuinely, we still back each other and we’re still here for each other. We just haven’t been able to put those performances out on the pitch.”

Malan recently accepted a new one-year central contract with the England and Wales Cricket Board and, at 36, was neither surprised nor aggrieved to miss out on one of the new multi-year offers.

He still hopes to play a part in next summer’s T20 World Cup but does not shy away from the fact that he is entering a different phase of his career.

Malan confirmed that his latest deal with Yorkshire was as a white-ball only deal, effectively ending a first-class career that brought more than 13,000 runs, 22 Test caps and the high point of an Ashes century in Perth.

“I’m not going to be playing four-day cricket, but I still have a contract with Yorkshire to play the Blast and I’ll still be playing the Hundred if I can get a contract in that,” he explained.

“I’ll probably try and play as much white-ball cricket as I can for the rest of my career. It’s prioritising spending a bit more time at home because my winters are so busy with internationals or franchise tournaments.”

Malan does not know how long his England days will last, but the appetite for fresh blood and renewal of an ageing side may hasten the end for several members of the current squad.

With that in mind, he knows the 2025 Champions Trophy may be a step too far for him but remains eager to clinch a top-eight finish in India and guarantee the next generation do not miss out of qualifying for the tournament.

“Two years feels a long way. I’m pretty sure I’ll be done but I’d love the guys to play in that,” he said.

“If the decision gets made to move on from players, the last thing you want is that we haven’t done well enough to give other players the opportunity in future to play in big tournaments. It’s definitely not going to be a situation where we just go through the motions because we’re potentially out of this World Cup. We have a lot at stake and a lot of pride for England to be in that Champions Trophy in two years’ time.”

Pakistan are targeting a late push for the Cricket World Cup semi-finals after a convincing seven-wicket win over Bangladesh.

Faced with a target of 205 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, Pakistan made light work of knocking it off, thanks in large part to opener Fakhar Zaman's 74-ball 81, which included seven sixes.

That victory moved Pakistan onto six points, with two pool matches - against third-placed New Zealand and lowly England - remaining.

Should they win both, then Babar Azam's side stand a strong chance of qualifying, though they will also rely on both the Black Caps and Australia, who both have a match in hand, slipping up.

"Credit to the boys, the way they played in all three departments," said captain Babar at the post-match presentation.

"We know how well Fakhar plays when he's going and it was good to see him do it.

"We are trying to win our remaining matches and see where we stand. This win hopefully gives confidence in the coming matches."

Bangladesh, meanwhile, have been eliminated, with their captain Shakib Al Hasan saying: "Not enough runs.

"We lost an early wicket, then we had partnerships but not big ones that would allow us to go big in the last ten overs."

Shakib put on 43 to complement a 45 from Litton Das and Mahmudullah's 56, but Bangladesh were bowled out for 204 after only 45.1 overs.

Fakhar's superb knock and Abdullah Shafique's 68 swiftly paved the way for Mohammad Rizwan (26 not out) and Iftikhar Ahmed (17no) to seal victory for Pakistan in the 33rd over.

It was just the fourth time Pakistan had defeated a team with at least 100 balls remaining in an ODI, having last done so against West Indies in 2011. The big win boosted their net run rate, which may still prove decisive in the battle to reach the semis.

"I practiced a lot after the Asia Cup," said Fakhar, who after hitting three successive ODI centuries earlier this year, had failed to score above 33 in his 11 innings since the start of May and lost his place in the side.

"Thankfully, I was feeling very good in the camp. I was looking forward to scoring for my team, but it's cricket, Today I got a chance. I had worked hard for this and it paid off.

"It doesn’t matter how the wicket will play, I know I can hit sixes, so I was just looking to play out the first four overs.

"My role is always to make it easy for my partner. I know my role, it was to see off the first four overs and then go for the ball. We were just looking to finish the game before the 30 overs.

"After too many failures I was always looking just to score the first 30 runs and I was struggling to get that. I’m very happy – hopefully I'll make it big in the next games."

Shaheen Afridi, meanwhile, joined Australia spinner Adam Zampa at the top of the wicket-taking charts for the tournament with figures of 3-23.

Dawid Malan believes it would be unfair for England’s head coach Matthew Mott to take the blame for a dire World Cup campaign, suggesting the players themselves “need to take responsibility”.

England arrived in India as reigning champions and among the favourites but have unravelled in dramatic fashion over the past month.

After six games they sit bottom of the table in 10th place, with a solitary win against fellow strugglers Bangladesh, leaving Mott’s white-ball role under scrutiny.

Speculation over the Australian’s position increased when Eoin Morgan, the side’s World Cup-winning former captain, claimed the squad seemed “unsettled” and later suggested England “take a leaf out of Baz’s book” – a direct reference to Test coach Brendon McCullum.

Malan, the top run-scorer and solitary centurion in an underperforming lineup, told BBC Sport: “Motty is not the one walking out on the field.

“We are being given everything we need to perform. The facilities and work, everything is being done as it always has been, we just haven’t been able to find a way to get wins on the board. It has been frustrating from a players’ point of view because we know we’re better than that.

“I’m not involved in selection or any of those things, so I don’t know how that works or who is in charge of all that, but as players we need to take responsibility when we cross that rope.”

Malan broadened the focus away from Mott’s future, insisting that everyone involved in the campaign would be feeling the same heat.

“When you don’t perform well enough as a team there will be questions asked of certain people, whether that is the players, captain, selectors, coach, whoever it is,” he said.

“There is always going to be questions asked, that just comes with it. The only way to change that narrative is to put runs on the board.

“But the mood is still extremely good in the camp. It still feels like all the boys are together.

“I know people say that a lot when their backs are against the wall but genuinely, we still back each other and we’re still here for each other. We just haven’t been able to put those performances out on the pitch.”

Cricket West Indies (CWI) and the Government of Antigua and Barbuda are in sync with initiatives that will benefit cricket stakeholders in the Caribbean.

On 25 October 2023, Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, Honorable Gaston Browne, held an audience with CWI President Dr. Kishore Shallow at the Office of the Prime Minister in St John’s. Also in attendance were Honorable Daryll Matthew, Minister of Sports, Ricky Skerritt, Chairman of the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) Board and former CWI President, and Nelecia Yeates, CCG General Manager.

The meeting focused on Antigua and Barbuda's continued role in cricket development, particularly in grassroots cricket, infrastructure improvement, and hosting international cricket. In addition, an update of the master development plan for CCG was presented to the government officials, with both parties identifying opportunities for collaboration to transform the existing cricket facility into one of the best in the world.

CWI President, Dr. Shallow was upbeat about the partnership with the Antigua and Barbuda government. He said: “Prime Minister Browne and his Government have been valuable friends of West Indies cricket. In recent years, their cooperation in supporting CWI in the acquisition of Coolidge Cricket Ground as our home of cricket has been truly appreciated. It gives us great confidence to have them as a key partner as we embark on this next development phase.”

President Shallow also commented on his predecessor’s involvement as CCG Board’s Chairman. He remarked: “The appointment of Ricky Skerritt as Chairman of CCG augurs well for the continuation and further investment in the potential of CCG. No doubt, his wealth of experience and institutional knowledge offer tremendous value to completing this next phase of the CCG project.”

The CCG Board met on 24 October, 2023, at the CWI headquarters at Coolidge. The updated design for the facility, inclusive of a state-of-the-art training facility, was presented by the designers. In addition to cricket, a significant component of the new development comprises commercial establishments.

Prime Minister Browne was also pleased about the upcoming international fixtures for Antigua & Barbuda. In December, the first two matches of the impending CG United One-Day International Series between West Indies and England will be held at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. The country was also named among the seven Caribbean host countries for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

Antigua has been the headquarters of CWI (formerly West Indies Cricket Board of Control and West Indies Cricket Board) for nearly three decades.

Liam Livingstone insists there are “no rifts in the camp” amid England’s World Cup meltdown, shooting down former captain Eoin Morgan’s suggestion that all is not well within the squad.

The defending champions have been in dire form since arriving in India, losing five out of their first six group games to lie rooted to the foot of the table.

No England team has ever lost as many games in a World Cup and with three matches still to play, including rivals Australia next up, there is scope for things to get even worse.

Morgan, the man who lifted the trophy at Lord’s four years ago and is credited with revolutionising England’s white-ball philosophy, remains close to the dressing room following his retirement 18 months ago and has sparked intrigue with his assessment of their campaign.

He suggested morale was as much of an issue as form and claimed “there is something within the team that is definitely unsettled”.

Livingstone waved away that theory, defending the team spirit amid mounting pressure.

“With all respect to Morgs, because everybody loves him in the dressing room, that’s completely not true,” he said.

“There’s certainly no rifts in the camp, I can tell you that. It’s not bowlers versus batters: we’re a unit. One thing about unity is you probably get tested more when things don’t go well; it’s easy to say the dressing room is amazing when things are going really well.

“From what I’m seeing, everybody is working their nuts off trying as hard as we can to turn it around. Things just haven’t really gone our way and we haven’t played as well as we want, pretty much all of us at the same time, which is disappointing.

“It’s obviously not easy when you lose so heavily a few times in a row, but the boys keep coming back to training day after day.

“There’s probably nobody more disappointed than what we are in that changing room, but everybody is trying to work together to change it.”

Morgan was commentating for Sky Sports as England crashed to their latest defeat, a 100-run loss to hosts India, and his post-match assessment will make further uncomfortable reading for head coach Matthew Mott.

The Australian worked briefly with Morgan before he called time on his career last summer, but the latter appeared to suggest Mott needed to take a lead from Test counterpart Brendon McCullum in his dealings with the team.

“When you sit back and nobody has an answer in the changing room or we can’t explain it (as pundits), you always compare things across formats,” he said.

“It has to be the intangible stuff, the feelings, the emotions. The preparation and the mindset has to change. It has to be tailored for that changing room. Maybe take a leaf out of Baz’s book.”

The long-term implications of England’s losing streak has become painfully clear over the past 48 hours, with their place at the 2025 Champions Trophy now in danger.

Qualification for the secondary 50-over tournament used to come via the ICC rankings, but a little-discussed change was made in 2021 to tie it directly to performance at the World Cup – a shift Mott says he was first became aware of midway through Sunday’s game.

England will need to climb from 10th to eighth to avoid being edged out, meaning they cannot afford to treat their remaining fixtures as dead rubbers.

“It is obviously very disappointing, but it gives us something to play for over the next three games,” said Livingstone.

“I think Australia are a good team to be facing next. They are someone who, in the World Cups that I’ve played in, we’ve done really well against and they are obviously massive games.

“It will be a great way for us to start our fightback and hopefully we can turn it around.”

England’s fifth defeat of their World Cup title defence continued their abject slide towards elimination.

Matthew Mott and Jos Buttler’s side would become only the third defending champions to exit at the group stage, and the first in 24 years, and are on course for one of the worst ever records for an established cricketing nation after defeat to India.

Here, the PA news agency looks at how they compare.

Champions Trophy trapdoor

An additional alarming element of England’s losing run is the possibility they could fail to qualify for the 2025 Champions Trophy – a secondary event in importance but an embarrassing one to miss out on.

A change in format tying qualification to World Cup performance means England will need to climb from 10th to eighth, putting pressure on remaining games against Australia, the Netherlands and Pakistan.

Bangladesh, also on two points, face Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Australia while the Dutch, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are all on four points.

England’s path to the Champions Trophy, therefore, surely involves at least two wins including beating the Netherlands by a sufficient margin to swing the net run rate in their favour – Pakistan, as Champions Trophy hosts, will qualify automatically.

To that end, England’s heavy losses so far put them in an even more difficult position. They suffered their heaviest ever defeat by runs, by 229, against South Africa and lost to India by 100 runs – not to mention Afghanistan by 69 – while their nine- and eight-wicket losses to New Zealand and Sri Lanka came with, respectively, 82 and 146 balls remaining.

Indeed, England are the first team to be bowled out in under 35 overs three times in a single men’s World Cup.

Worst defences

The West Indies won the first two World Cups then lost the 1983 final to India, who went on to reach the 1987 semi-finals.

Australia finished fifth of nine teams in the 1992 group stage as defending champions and co-hosts, missing out by a point after Pakistan got a fortunate no-result against England having been bowled out for 74.

Sri Lanka, surprise champions in 1996, finished fifth in Group A in 1999. Their record ranked 10th of 12 teams overall, ahead of only Kenya and Scotland and behind Bangladesh on net run rate, so is the nearest comparison to England’s efforts so far – though even then, Sri Lanka won two games and lost only three.

Australia won that tournament, their first of three in a row before reaching the 2007 quarter-finals. They and India have since reached semi-finals as defending champions.

Unwanted company

There have been 32 instances of a team losing five or more games in a single men’s World Cup, including England and Bangladesh this year.

Zimbabwe have suffered that fate five times and Bangladesh four, with three occasions each for Sri Lanka – all prior to their 1996 win – Kenya and the Netherlands.

Scotland, Canada, the West Indies and Afghanistan have done so twice apiece with one each for India, South Africa, Namibia, Ireland, the United Arab Emirates and now England.

While the World Cup is a limited-overs tournament, Test-playing status has traditionally been the measure of the leading cricketing nations and six of those teams, accounting for 12 five-loss campaigns, have never played a Test.

Ireland and Afghanistan have played only seven apiece and Sri Lanka, while now established, had played only 39 up to the 1992 World Cup. Zimbabwe and Bangladesh have played fewer than 150 each and have always been among the lower-ranked Test nations, leaving only India in 1992, the West Indies in 2007 and 2019 and South Africa in the latter tournament as close comparisons for England.

Just when you thought things could not get worse for the Jamaica Scorpions, they have. The 2022 CG United Insurance Super50 champions lost their fifth game on the trot going down by four wickets to the Windward Islands Volcanoes at Torouba on Sunday.

Batting first, the impotent Scorpions were bundled out for 158 in 42.2 overs. Chasing 159 for victory the Volcanoes made heavy weather of the chase but managed to achieve their target in 36.2 overs.

The woeful batting of the Jamaica Scorpions was again on full display against the Windwards as despite a welcome return to form of Nkrumah Bonner, the remainder of the batters barely put of a fight. Bonner stitched together a patient knock of 72 from 110 balls but alas no one else would follow his lead. Captain Rovman Powell disappointed once again making only 13 and was one of only three other batters in double figures - Shalome Parnell, who also made and Brad Barnes 10 – as Jamaica folded meekly against the Windwards’ attack.

This time it was the pace bowling of Shermon Lewis and Darel Cyrus that did the damage, the former taking 3-18 with the latter chipping in with 3-40. Andre Fletcher’s gentle medium also accounted for two wickets at a cost of only seven runs.

The Windwards’ chase was not as easy as they would have wished but they did enough to achieve the desired outcome. Jeremy Solozano held the middle order together to top-score with 40 with opener Alick Athanaze producing another decent knock of 36 but failed to carry on.

Shamar Springer scored an unbeaten 24 to get the Windwards over the line against a Jamaican bowling attack that has lacked a cutting edge all season. Jeavor Royal, Shalome Parnell, Brad Barnes and Shalome Parnell each took a wicket for the winless Scorpions.

The Cricket West Indies (CWI) tournament technical committee of the ongoing CG United Super 50 Cup has approved a player replacement for the Guyana Harpy Eagles.

Shamar Joseph has replaced Ronsford Beaton, who has picked up an injury, for the remainder of the tournament. It is a like for like replacement, with both players being fast bowlers.

Joseph becomes immediately available to play, having been added to the Harpy Eagles training squad in Trinidad prior to the opening of the tournament. In their fifth match of the competition, they are currently doing battle at UWI – Spec against the Barbados Pride, who are fifth in the table with 22 points after 3 matches.

The Guyana Harpy Eagles currently sit sixth in the points table, having amassed a total of 15 points in their 4 matches thus far, with 3 more matches to be played in the group stage.

The CG United Super 50 group stage concludes on Sunday November 5. The Harpy Eagles will be looking to win their remaining matches and push for one of four semifinal places.

The grand finale will be played at 1PM on Saturday, November 11 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.

England head coach Matthew Mott has rejected former captain Eoin Morgan’s suggestion that his team are “unsettled” behind the the scenes despite watching yet another heavy World Cup defeat.

Mott worked with Morgan when he took over the white-ball side 18 months ago, but the Irishman headed into retirement soon after, passing the baton to Jos Buttler.

As the man who led England’s World Cup triumph in 2019, Morgan’s word still carries plenty of weight and he has made some eye-catching observations about his old team-mates.

Speaking to Sky Sports prior to England’s 100-run loss to India in Lucknow, their fifth loss in six games of an abject title defence, he said the side were “definitely unsettled” and responded to the idea they were simply off form by saying “there’s something else going on, there has to be”.

Having then watched England’s latest collapse against the hosts, which kept them rooted to the foot of the table, Morgan said he would have laughed in the face of anyone who had predicted such a plight at the start of the tournament.

Responding to those comments after the latest setback, Mott said: “Eoin’s entitled to his opinion. He’s obviously been away (from India) for a couple of weeks with the birth of his child and he hasn’t been in and around the rooms.

“But I’ll certainly take that up with him and have a chat to him. We’ve got a really good relationship with him so if he’s seeing something I’m not I’ll definitely have that conversation.

“I don’t think that (is the case) at all. Anyone inside our tent at the moment would say, despite our results, we’re an incredibly tight-knit unit.

“There’s every opportunity when you’re losing to splinter and go other ways but I can only say from my opinion that the group has been incredibly strong.

“You see our training sessions and they are full of fun, people are putting their arms around each other trying to help them. It’s easy to do that when you’re winning but a lot harder when you’re losing and I’m proud we just keep trying to get up.”

Chris Woakes also stood up for the unity of the squad, telling Sky: “I can firmly say there is nothing wrong with the dressing room.”

Regardless of morale, there is no disguising just how badly things have gone for an England side who arrived as close second favourites and have since put together their worst ever run of form in a chequered history at the World Cup.

Things have got so bad that they have played their way into potentially missing out on a place at the next major 50-over global competition.

It has come to light that places at the 2025 Champions Trophy will be allocated based on performances in this competition, with hosts Pakistan joined by the seven highest finishers.

With three matches to go England sit in 10th spot, behind both the Netherlands and Bangladesh.

Remarkably, Mott admitted he was not aware the qualification process had moved away from its previous link to world rankings until media reports which landed midway through the India defeat.

The decision was ratified by the ICC board in November 2021, when the England and Wales Cricket Board was being led by previous chief executive Tom Harrison, but the information appears to have been waylaid in transition.

Asked in his post-match press conference when he learned about the potential Champions Trophy issue, Mott said: “About an hour-and-a-half ago.

“The ICC do change the rules quite a bit with qualification but to be honest I don’t think it would affect in any way the way we’ve played in this tournament, so it’s not a big deal.

“It’s plenty of motivation for us to pick ourselves back up off the canvas and keep trying to throw punches. It gives us a lot of focus that we need to make sure we can’t just ‘turn up’. We’ve got to win these games.”

England were counting the cost of their worst ever World Cup campaign after they flopped to a fifth defeat in six games against hosts India.

Despite a rocky history in one-day cricket the defending champions of 2019 have plumbed new depths over the last four weeks, racking up their most losses at a single tournament and an unprecedented sequence of four-in-a-row.

A 100-run thrashing in Lucknow, where they were skittled for a paltry 129, leaves them rooted to the foot of the table in 10th place and on course to embarrassingly miss out on the 2025 Champions Trophy.

It has emerged that places at that event, a ‘mini World Cup’ of sorts, will be awarded to hosts Pakistan and the seven best finishers in group stages of this event rather than being allocated on ICC rankings. As it stands, merely scrambling to eighth place will require a mighty turnaround in fortunes over the next three games.

For a side widely credited with revitalising the 50-over format over the last eight years, that would cap a remarkable fall from grace.

Losing to the table-topping hosts in front of 50,000 bombastic fans at the Ekana Stadium was no surprise – head coach Matthew Mott even billed the opposition “raging favourites” – but this was an opportunity missed.

A much-improved bowling and fielding performance, their best of the tournament to date, had restricted India to 229 for nine, but a top-order collapse left a hole they could not climb out of.

Between the penultimate ball of the fifth over and the first ball of the ninth, England lost their top four for just nine runs as Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami ran amok. Between them the seam duo were a cut above England, sharing combined figures of seven for 54.

England began their chase with an air of misplaced confidence, tearing 30 off their target in less than five overs before things fell apart.

The architect of their downfall was the impeccable Bumrah, who had already started to get the ball talking before he claimed two wickets in two balls.

Dawid Malan was the first, slashing at width that was not there and dragging down his own stumps to stop the growing momentum in its tracks. For his next trick, Bumrah removed the linchpin Root for a golden duck.

Sizing his target up with a wicked delivery that tailed in on a full length, he thumped the front pad as Root shuffled across. It looked plumb lbw, but Root called for DRS.

UltraEdge showed a tiny disturbance as the ball passed the inside edge but TV umpire Ahsan Raza upheld the dismissal leaving Root pointedly waving his bat towards the big screen replays.

Stokes has bailed England out of worse dilemmas, but this time he could only exacerbate it.

Unable to get to grips with a high-class examination from India’s seamers he departed to an ugly swipe after a runless 10-ball cameo. Resolving to slog his way out of the mire, he cleared his front leg to a precision inducker from Shami, losing his composure, his balance and two of his stumps in one dreadful moment.

The stands exploded in celebration, with Kohli leaping high and punching the air with joy. Bairstow was next in line, bowled by Shami via two separate deflections to leave England 39 for four.

Buttler’s lean spell continued as he was wildly outfoxed by a ripper from left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav, hunched over his bat as he took England’s last hopes with him. Liam Livingstone top-scored with a modest 27, but the contest was already over settled as India applied the finishing touches inside 35 overs.

England, who surprisingly went in with the same XI that had been roundly hammered by Sri Lanka three days earlier, at least showed some fight in the first innings.

They bowled with control, kept producing chances and were visibly sharper in the field. Were it not for a captain’s knock of 87 from Rohit Sharma, that may well have been enough.

But his steadying hand, allied to a handy contribution of 49 from Suryakumar Yadav at the back end, bought India’s attack enough breathing space.

David Willey was the standout, claiming three for 45 including star man Virat Kohli for a nine-ball duck. Willey bowled every delivery to the master batter, tying him up with a nagging line and length before drawing a frustrated hack to mid-off.

That moment drew an instant, deathly silence from the massed thousands wearing replica ‘Virat’ shirts, with Willey flexing his biceps and filling the void with his own roar. He followed up with timely dismissals of KL Rahul (39) and Yadav, while Woakes and Adil Rashid also turned in encouraging performances.

With India losing four for 49 in the last 10 overs, it was hard to see what more England could have done to set up the chase but a limp batting display saw them bowled out for their lowest World Cup total since the inaugural edition in 1975.

England produced their best bowling performance of the World Cup, restricting hosts India to 229 for nine in Lucknow.

Jos Buttler’s side headed into the match with nothing to lose, rock bottom in the standings after four defeats from five and with their semi-finals chances up in smoke, and finally put in a performance worthy of their reputation.

David Willey took three crucial wickets, including star man Virat Kohli for a nine-ball duck to silence a partisan 50,000 crowd, while Adil Rashid and Chris Woakes took two apiece.

India, who boast a 100 per cent record after five games, relied on captain Rohit Sharma’s 87 and will need to bowl well under lights to retain their unblemished streak.

After Buttler won the toss the day began with an intriguing skirmish between Willey and Sharma. The Englishman started the match with a maiden over, only for Sharma to blast two sixes and a four from his next visit.

Before the pair had the chance for a third round, Woakes landed a blow of his own that floored Shubman Gill. Attacking the stumps and finding a big slice of seam movement, he snaked the ball between bat and pad to get England on the board.

The crowd’s momentary disappointment was eased by the knowledge that Kohli was next up, with the stadium announcer hailing the arrival of ‘the King’ to deafening roars.

Yet his response was anything but regal, unable to get off strike as Willey ploughed away on an awkward length and waited for a mistake. It came sooner than he might have expected, with Kohli’s patience failing him.

Attempting to break the shackles with a smash down the ground, he got a poor connection and popped a gentle catch to a delighted Ben Stokes. Willey’s howl of celebration pierced the deathly quiet from the stands, which were filled with thousands of replica ‘Virat’ shirts, while the man himself was forced to vacate the stage.

England’s control in the powerplay was outstanding, with India failing to score off 47 of their 60 balls as they crawled to 35 for two. Woakes was backed to keep the pressure on and did just that, hurrying Shreyas Iyer with a short ball that sailed to mid-off via a top edge.

Rohit proved more durable, surviving a run out attempt from Stokes and overturning an lbw on 33 thanks to DRS. He exuded calm as he shepherded KL Rahul in a stand of 91, assuming almost full responsibility for building a total.

Rahul (39) clubbed the returning Willey straight to mid-on and Sharma’s spirited knock ended with a slog-sweep off Rashid. Liam Livingstone held on well in the deep, despite jarring his knee in the process.

India managed 49 for four in the last 10 overs, Suryakumar Yadav cut off in his prime on 49 as Willey landed the last of his three big scalps.