After the match and the presentations ended, Naseer Hussain, made a passing remark about England. Never will his words ring more truer than they did then. He said the performance of England in Cricket World Cup 2011 went a long way in not only elevating the tournament but also the format. A little exaggerated but not off the mark at all
England have played five matches in all and they have taken all their matches to the boiling point. These matches will either be remembered by their own fans or the fans of the opposition they faced. Close win against Netherlands, followed by a tie against India, loss against Ireland, win against South Africa, loss against Bangladesh. That they still have a chance to qualify to the knock-outs, if they defeat West Indies not only sets up a tantalising prospect but also more heartbreak for one set of fans
After their dismal performance against West Indies, Bangladesh were hoping to avoid the repeat. They immediately chose to field as soon as they won the toss. They were wary of the dew factor in the evening. Shakib’s decision to bat was well backed up by his bowlers. They held their own against the batsmen till the arrival of Morgan to the crease. Morgan set about earnestly with the task on hand. He displayed the skill levels and the pluck that made Sachin Tendulkar to talk of him in high esteem
Once he fell, England’s innings collapsed like a pack of cards in the hands of a kid. They made strategical blunder by promoting Swann ahead of Collingwood. In the end Collingwood had to watch from the non strikers end as the collapse was being orchestrated by the tail enders
That was not the only point that Bangladesh came out on top of the battle. In fact Prior’s dismissal can be run a thousand times over to show the presence of mind of Rahim. When Prior’s back leg was in the crease as he dislodged the bails. Rahim showed the presence of mind and also the speed of his hands as he quickly uprooted the stumps. It did not help Prior that he too is a keeper
Although Shakib’s fear of dew playing a factor in the opening game of the World Cup were unfounded, it certainly played it’s part here. Swann found it tough to grip the ball and lost his cool on more occasions than one. He was frustrated as the seam was getting wet with the evening dew. The dew rendered two of England’s most potent weapons ineffective- James Anderson and Graeme Swann
Many of the England’s woes in this tournament have been attributed to Anderson’s profligate bowling. Although he did well against South Africa, he was back to the old habits in this match. Both he and Shahzad were guilty of gifting Tamim with scoring opportunities by pitching the ball on the pads
Imrul played the sheet anchor role with Tamim and the accumulator role with Shakib as he kept the chase going. However it was his dismissal to a silly run-out that triggered a collapse in the middle order. Shahzad began to find his range and removed Rahim and Naeem Islam with beautiful outswingers. The match started to turn the Bangladesh way in the final over of Swann’s spell as he conceded 16 runs in that over
Anderson hit the final nails into the coffin by bowling wides at a crucial phase in the match. No words would be enough to describe the bravado of Shafiul Islam and his partnership with Mahmudullah as Bangladesh won with a over to spare and brightened their chances of a knock out berth
With all the matches that they are involved in, running close, England have the unenviable task of defeating West Indies and hope the other results go their way. In the previous World Cup and at IPL 2 Adam Gilchrist reiterated that if they win the matches, the net run rate would take care of itself
England are not in a position to say so but the kind of entertainment that they have given the paying public, they would so don’t bother and continue dishing the same. Like a fan of Barmy army would be tempted to ask “Which England will turn up against West Indies”? Regardless of which England turns up, we can be sure of one thing- The match will be entertaining and exciting
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