Dismal England Eliminated from World Cup by Bangladesh and More from Day 24
The torture has finished. But the backlash and fallout have only just begun.
For England, that's the situation after they were knocked out of the 2015 Cricket World Cup in dramatic fashion by Bangladesh at the Adelaide Oval on Monday.
Chasing 276 for victory, Eoin Morgan's team fell 15 runs short, bowled out for 260 in good batting conditions as Bangladesh's seamers dismantled England's lineup.
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At one point, at 121 for two, the men in blue looked well-placed to reach the required total comfortably, but a middle-order collapse that saw England slump to 163 for six was a blow they never recovered from, despite an impressive innings from Jos Buttler.
For their part, Bangladesh were outstanding, with Mahmudullah and Mushfiqur Rahim playing match-defining innings, before being backed up excellently with the ball by Mashrafe Mortaza, Rubel Hossain and Taskin Ahmed.
But for England, it's now a matter of probing questions.
Why couldn't the team benefit from six months of solid, one-day international preparation? Why do England's players appear so bereft of individuality and flair? Is the team's statistical fixation to blame? When will the county system be overhauled? When will change occur at the England and Wales Cricket Board? When will England embrace a modern mentality to their limited-overs cricket?
What will it take for a radically new approach to be taken?
The Immediate Backlash
Predictably, the reaction to England's exit at the World Cup was both rapid and savage. Here's a sample of it:
"And they celebrate! @Irelandcricket #CWC15 #ENGvBAN pic.twitter.com/dDqcsLO60O
— HoldingWilleyCricket (@holdingwilley) March 9, 2015"
"Peter Moores: 'We've lost some players'. Can't bring himself to say 'Pietersen'
— Ian Prior (@ianprior) March 9, 2015"
Morgan's Nightmare
When Morgan was appointed as captain of England's ODI team to replace the sacked Alastair Cook, it was viewed as a necessary change for the evolution of the side.
Essentially, England needed to become more aggressive and proactive with both the bat and their approach, and Morgan's ascension to the leadership was supposed to be a catalyst for that.
However, despite the reasoning being sound, Morgan's dire personal form has proved catastrophic for his side.
With yet another scoreless effort on Monday, the left-hander extended his barren run to five ducks in his last 11 innings.
Over the Line but Not Safe
Chris Jordan was involved in a bizarre incident in the closing stages of England's chase on Monday, when he was adjudged run out by the third umpire despite his bat being well over the line.
After setting off for a quick single before turning back, Jordan made a desperate dive to make his ground but saw his bat bounce up off the turf after landing, meaning that the third umpire had to decide whether any of the bat was actually grounded behind the line at the time of the ball hitting the stumps.
To the naked eye, it appeared (as shown in the image above) that the shoulder of the bat was touching the turf, but Jordan was sent back to the dressing room amid what was a chaotic ending to the match.
Delivery of the Day
Catch of the Day
Pool A
| New Zealand | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | +3.090 |
| Australia | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | +1.597 |
| Bangladesh | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | +0.211 |
| Sri Lanka | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | -0.151 |
| England | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -1.001 |
| Afghanistan | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 2 | -1.881 |
| Scotland | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.423 |
Tuesday's Schedule
Tuesday at the World Cup sees India take on Ireland at Seddon Park in Hamilton. With MS Dhoni's men unbeaten and the Irish having impressively won three of their opening four games, both teams entering the Pool B clash will want to solidify their strong positions in the points table.
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