England Top 2019 Cricket World Cup Standings After Win vs. Afghanistan
June 18, 2019
England moved to the top of the 2019 Cricket World Cup standings after beating Afghanistan by 150 runs on Tuesday at Old Trafford in Manchester.
Eoin Morgan was passed fit for the clash after a back problem and was the star man as the tournament hosts picked up their fourth win in five games.
The England captain hit a world-record 17 sixes, the most in an ODI innings, on his way to 148 off 71 balls to inspire his side to an emphatic win.
England were without the injured Jason Roy for Tuesday's match, allowing James Vince to come in and open up alongside Jonny Bairstow.
However, the 28-year-old could not find a big score on his World Cup debut and went for 26 in the 10th over.
Cricket writer Chris Stocks offered his thoughts:
England produced a batting masterclass with Bairstow just 10 short of a century, while Joe Root picked up where he left off against the West Indies with 88.
However, it was Morgan who dazzled the most and sent a number of records tumbling:
Morgan only arrived at the end of the 30th over but quickly made his impact felt, reaching his half-century after just 36 balls.
The 32-year-old could have gone earlier but was dropped by Dawlat Zadran on 26 at deep midwicket.
It proved a costly error by Afghanistan, as the Ireland native pieced together one of the all-time great ODI batting displays and departed to a deserved standing ovation:
England's dismantling of the Afghanistan bowling attack also meant it was a miserable day for Afghan leg-spinner Rashid Khan.
The 20-year-old star did not take a single wicket from his nine overs and picked up an unwanted record:
England's batting heroics left Afghanistan needing 398 to win, and they suffered an early blow when Jofra Archer dispatched Noor Ali Zadran with just his second delivery of the match.
Wicketkeeper Jos Buttler caught captain Gulbadin Naib off Mark Wood to leave Afghanistan 52 for two, but England were made to wait for victory as Hashmatullah Shahidi and Asghar Afghan offered some resistance.
Hashmatullah hit his second half-century of the tournament off 66 balls despite receiving treatment after being being hit on the helmet by a bouncer from Wood.
It was a spirited effort by Afghanistan, helped by Bairstow dropping two catches at slip, as England registered their highest batting total of the World Cup so far.
However, Archer and Wood rattled through their lower middle order late in the day to seal a ruthless performance by the hosts that sends them top of the table after their five games.