England thrashed Bangladesh in their second ODI Cricket World Cup match in reply to a humiliating defeat at the hands of New Zealand.
The defending champions were put into bat by Shakib Al Hasan’s side who won comfortably against Afghanistan in their opening game of the tournament.
Dawid Malan was the star as England reached 364 for 9, scoring a majestic 140 off 107 balls. He was supported by fellow opener Jonny Bairstow who muddled to 52, and another classy, controlled Joe Root innings who made 82 to go with his 77 against New Zealand.
England then bowled Bangladesh for 227, Reece Topley with an excellent performance to pick up 4-43 as he came into the side for Moeen Ali, Jos Buttler opting for the tall, left armer to give the pace attack an injection after a poor showing against the Black Caps on Thursday.
Linton Das looked Bangladesh’s only threat as he scored a clinical 76 while others fell around him, but his efforts were cut short with the pressure of England’s run rate mounting.
So, as England get their defence campaign back on track, here is all you need to know about the demolition of Bangladesh.
Don’t Doubt Dawid
Dawid Malan’s scintillating 140 confirmed his class at the top level of cricket and sent the message out to the cricketing world- doubt Dawid Malan at your peril.
The opener drove, flicked, swept, and smashed his way to an outstanding century, which was a masterclass in timing and building an innings.
Malan was dropped by England last summer for the home tours against South Africa and India, his place going to returning test match players, despite hitting a century as part of England’s world record ODI score of 498 against the Netherlands.
The former world number one T20 batsman was then dropped in the Hundred by Trent Rockets after four low scores, and his England World Cup place seemed under pressure with the exciting Harry Brook knocking on the window.
Malan, much criticized for his low scoring and not having the lethal power of other top England white ball talents, fuelled by a change of position – opening the batting in absence of Jason Roy, has silenced the critics and found an extra gear, to dispel the myth that he cannot score quickly.
After a colossal series against New Zealand in the warmup games, scoring 127, 96 and 54. The left hander averages 68 in his last ten ODI innings and has the third highest average in history in One Day Internationals and will deservedly be a key part of England’s team this tournament.
Building Blocks
At 266-2 with 13 overs left, England were on for a mammoth score of over 400. With explosive batters Liam Livingstone and Harry Brook still to come in, captain Jos Butter promoted himself up the order to try and put the game to bed and give England the highest score possible with the intention to up the run rate after the drubbing to New Zealand.
This, however, did not materialise. England made only another 68 runs for the last 7 wickets- Buttler, Livingstone and Brook failing to add anything of value to the scoreboard. While this didn’t affect today’s game, the importance of being ruthless against the bigger teams that are yet to come in the competition will be vital and Buttler will be disappointed his team haven’t posted a score of 400+.
A collapse of this magnitude just highlights the need for building blocks, for batsmen to get themselves in and to propel their innings and get more aggressive as it goes on. Dawid Malan and Joe Root, two players criticised for not being explosive and perhaps having a slower run rate showed why they are vital to this England team. Root became England’s leading run scorer in ODI World Cups, surpassing Graham Gooch. His and Malan’s ability to craft an innings, to soak up pressure, to keep the scoreboard ticking over at a run a ball and then explode cannot be underestimated.
It’s time to value the crafting of an innings the same a big six down the ground.
Reece on Top
Reece Topley hasn’t had the easiest of routes to his maiden ODI World Cup game, with freakish and regular injuries stunting the 6-foot 7 left arm quick’s progress in an England shirt. The dangerman has showed incredible mental resilience to battle back from back injuries and being ruled out of last years T20 world cup after tripping over a boundary rope in a warmup. The fact he boasts England’s record ODI figures of 6-24 says a lot about his undeniable talent and explosive bowling.
The 29-year-old came in for Moeen Ali and immediately showed why, picking up wickets in consecutive balls in his first over. Topley bowled fantastically, finishing with figures of 4- 43 and led the pace attack, with his incredible combination of outswing and bounce tearing through the Bangladesh batting lineup, picking up the wickets of Tanzid Hasan and Hossain Shanto in his first over. His most impressive wicket and ball of the day was the removal of experienced and dangerous Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan with a delicious ball that jagged off a perfect length and crashed into the top of off stump.
Topley has cemented his place in the team, a shining light in an England bowling attack that has struggled slightly, fellow opening bowler Chris Woakes being torn apart in his opening spells in both games.
No Diving Allowed
Both teams refrained from any acrobatics or diving stops in the field, a result of a sandy, tumultuous pitch at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala, which saw Afghanistan’s Mujeeb Ur Rahman dislodge his knee while attempting to stop a flying ball against Bangladesh on Saturday.
Jos Buttler wasn’t happy with the pitch- describing it as “poor” and was worried that it would “take away the integrity of the game”, with the deteriorating, sandy- make up of the pitch stopping players from being able to slide, dive and put their bodies on the line in fear of injury.
England will hope that these pitches aren’t a trend for the rest of the World Cup as they look to give game time to Ben Stokes as he comes back from a hip injury.
England’s next game is against Afghanistan in Delhi and the defending champions will know that while a much-improved controlled performance knocked aside Bangladesh today, better is needed if they are to retain their crown.
Written by Daniel Allerton. Twitter @DanielAllerton4