Why It's All Gone Wrong For England At The World Cup?
Reigning champions England have lost three of their opening four World Cup matches, with Saturday's 229-run thrashing by South Africa in Mumbai their heaviest one-day international defeat. Three reasons Why It's All Gone Wrong For England At The World Cup?
AFP Sport looks at where things have been going wrong for Jos Buttler's men in the 50-over game.
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England had the chance to dictate terms against South Africa after Jos Buttler won the toss in Mumbai. Yet despite the oppressive heat and humidity he chose to bowl, exposing his entire side to the energy-sapping conditions at the Wankhede Stadium.
Buttler, speaking at the toss, said "this is generally a good ground for chasing".
But, not for the first time, it looked as if England were making a move based on meagre historical evidence rather than confronting the immediate present of fielding first in the heat of the afternoon.
Several players suffered with paceman David Willey among the worst-affected as he struggled with cramp.
"On reflection, I thought the heat was more than what we bargained for," said England white-ball coach Matthew Mott.
But given England have been in India for several weeks, they had little reason to be surprised by the weather in Mumbai.
Former England captain Nasser Hussain was scathing, contrasting the current approach with that of 2019 World Cup-winning skipper Eoin Morgan.
"Eoin Morgan used statistics, but there was a lot of gut feeling there too," Hussain told Sky Sports. "You need to get your decisions right, don't just go to your default settings."
Buttler's toss call was all the more surprising given that one statistic he should have been aware of is England's poor recent record batting second in ODIs -- Saturday's reverse was their seventh loss in their last eight completed run-chases at this level.
That list includes a 69-run defeat by Afghanistan in their previous World Cup match, although the temptation to dismiss that loss as a 'freak result' may have clouded their thinking.
