In a battle between two sides that were coming off losses in previous series, it was England‘s woes that continued at the Optus Stadium in Perth. They lost the toss but started decently before losing the plot post the mandatory power play. England, who were missing Jos Buttler and Jacob Bethell due to injuries, still had a decent batting group, but they all faltered to the Mahli Beardman show. The debutant in front of his home ground just ran through the England middle and lower order and finished with a 6-wicket haul. It was all Australia in Perth.
We will try and find out why England faltered and the areas they really need to work on to keep this 3-match ODI series alive and kicking. After losing the first game, the next game is now a must-win for the Three Lions.
Losing 6/27 post power play to Mahli Beardman’s brilliant 5-wicket haul sealed the fate of the match there only
England were put into bat first by Australia at the Optus Stadium and to be fair to the visitors, they got off to a decent looking start scoring 24 runs in 5 overs before losing Ben Duckett. Thereafter, Tom Banton who got a start added 14 runs with Joe Root and took the score to 38 before being dismissed as the Aussie new ball bowlers Spencer Johnson and Xavier Bartlett got a wicket apiece. England’s score read 38/2 in 10 overs which is not a great start, but not horrendous by any means.
But what followed next post the power play in the middle phase was catastrophic for the visitors. Mahli Beardman who bowled the last over of power play which was a maiden ripped through England’s middle and lower middle order in a jiffy. Captain Harry Brook was his first victim on debut and that was followed by Joe Root. Soon, Jordan Cox followed suit. Then Sam Curran too fell. Most of it was caught behind with Curran’s being caught at deep fine leg.
Beardman completed his 5-wicket haul in no time as he dismissed Liam Dawson who was caught at backward point. Spencer Johnson also joined in and dismissed Jamie Overton caught and bowled as England went from 38/2 in the 9th over to 65/8 in 19 overs. The game was sealed here only. The visitors must thank Gus Atkinson and Will Jacks to show resistance and take the score beyond 100 and then Jofra Archer as well to score some runs to get it to 131. But that was never going to challenge the hosts even on this spicy pitch.
It goes without saying, England needs to improve their batting as a whole to compete in this series. It is a quick turnaround and Sunday’s game is in Adelaide, South Australia. So, a lot of travelling from Western Australia to South Australia. But England needs to find ways of batting better and show their mettle before it’s too late in this 3-match series which will get over before we blink.
Inability to stop Mitchell Marsh in the power play didn’t help the cause at all
While defending such a paltry score, England needed a perfect bowling performance to make even a match out of this. 131 was never going to challenge the hosts for sure. But we expected some wickets and fight from the Englishmen. While they got rid of Travis Head early for a golden duck, they could not stop the marauding Australian captain Mitchell Marsh. We have seen Marsh do this lately, start aggressively in power play and score quick fire cameos.
While in ODIs, big score is the need of the hour but in this game a quickfire cameo would have broken the back of the chase and that is exactly what Marsh did at the end of the day. He came out all guns blazing and even the wicket of Head did not deter him one bit. The others just played normal cricket as Marsh was the aggressor. He hit 4 fours and 4 sixes in his 50 off 30 balls and never looked back after that in his home ground in Perth.
England bowled the slot balls and wrong lines and lengths to him and he paid the price for it. He scored 50 off the first 67 runs inside 9 overs before being dismissed as Australia were more than halfway there to the score. So, England when they come up against him on Sunday must first hope they win the toss and bowl and then try and get rid of Marsh as Head is having indifferent form in this format so far. That will be their aim.
Overdependency on Joe Root & Harry Brook hurting England
Another important thing to note is that England are overdependent on Joe Root and Harry Brook. With no Jos Buttler and Jacob Bethell in their ranks, the onus is on the Test captain and ODI captain to score the runs. But when they failed, the team totally collapsed. The openers gave them a decent start before falling in the power play only as they were 38/2 in 10 overs.
There was hope that Root and Brook will stabilise the innings for England and set it up for the others to come in down the order. But the duo found Beardman hot to handle. Both fell one after another without making meaningful contributions and like that the batting order was exposed. Suddenly, no anchor player and no Buttler as they collapsed to 65/8 in no time. With World Cup around the corner, these kind of collapses from the batting unit must worry England management. Overdependency on Root and Brook may be a bane for England going forward.
Going ahead, yes Root and Brook must perform in Adelaide. But if we look at the bigger picture, then we feel that other batters need to step up and take responsibility. There is no Buttler so some others like Cox or the openers need to take responsibility and do bulk of the scoring. Collective responsibility will help the team grow especially against the Aussies and the World Cup. Overdependency on individuals will hurt the team be it England, India or any team for that matter.
What Lies Ahead
So, Australia have drawn first blood in the series and lead the 3-match ODI series 1-0. They will look to seal it on Sunday at Adelaide Oval, South Australia where the 2nd ODI is set to take place from 9 AM IST onwards. Can England bounce back from this heavy defeat and keep the series alive? Or will Australia be too hot to handle? Find all the answers on Super Sunday.
Also Read: AUS VS ENG: Mahli Beardman’s Maiden 6-Wicket Haul Demoralised England.