Published: Sep 14, 2015, 07:30 AM (IST)
Edited: Sep 15, 2015, 04:57 AM (IST)
Australia defeated England by eight wickets in the fifth and final One-Day International (ODI) at Old Trafford, Manchester on Sunday to win the series. England though deserve credit for coming back in the series after being 0-2 down. Nikhil Popat ponders over their performance and rates the performance of the England squad players during the ODI series. CRICKET SCORECARD: England vs Australia, 5th ODI at Old Trafford
It would have been a fairy-tale ending for England had they won the fifth and final One-Day International (ODI) series. Had they won, it would have meant that they do not lose any series in the home summer. But on the day of the finale, England had lost the game at the end of the first innings itself, when they were bowled out for a score of 138. Australia won the game by eight wickets after a early stutter but it marked the summer perfectly for England who blew hot and cold at times and were not consistent enough. Let’s have a look how each player of the England squad performed and rate them accordingly.
Alex Hales (1/10): The England opener had a series to forget against Australia. Coming on the back of some impressive scores in List A games for Nottingham. He had scores of 22, 18, 9, 0 and 4 in the five-match series, averaging a mere 10.60. Pat Cummins dismissed him thrice in the series and Hales looked completely out of touch. England might persist with him and give him a longer rope but Hales he will know that he will have to do much more than what he did at home to be a permanent fixture in the team.
Jason Roy (6.5/10): The South Africa-born was a breath of fresh air at the top of the order for England. He was the reason got a launch pad in games to take the game forward. He got starts in all the games except for the final one-dayer. He hit a couple of fifties and two scores in the thirties. England though would have wished for him to continue on his merry way. Having done the hard work of seeing off the new ball and providing the starts, Roy should have looked to play the sheet anchor role and register big scores. Roy though has time on his hands and will be hoping to better his numbers even more in the coming tourneys.
James Taylor (7/10): James Taylor might not have looked the most convincing batsman at the crease but Taylor had a very good series against Australia. Having being on the fringes of selection for long, Taylor was impressive, he averaged 49.20 in the five games with a highest score of 101 that helped England stay alive in the series. With Joe Root expected to come back in, the trio of Taylor, Eoin Morgan and Root could be form a strong middle order for England.
Eoin Morgan (9/10): The Irish-born England captain was easily the best player for the home team in the one-dayers. It took a blow on the right side of his helmet while facing Mitchell Starc in the fifth and final ODI that stopped him from scoring. He was in exquisite form and was consistent in his scores. Barring the last ODI, his lowest score in four games was 38. He also led the side well and should be commended for helping England comeback in the series after being 0-2 down. VIDEO: Eoin Morgan hit on head by Mitchell Starc bouncer during 5th ODI at Old Trafford
Ben Stokes (4/10): Ben Stokes was the centre of attention of the ODI series following the controversial obstructing the field dismissal in the second ODI at Lord’s. Stokes was not at his best with the bat in the ODIs averaging just 24 in the five games. His bowling too lacked the bite and he picked up just the three wicket. His fielding though was exceptional throughout the one-dayers.
Jos Buttler (1/10): Jos Buttler had a home summer to forget. He did not get going in the Ashes 2015 and was far from his best in the ODI series. He was ‘rested’ after just the first two games where he scored just the four runs and took a couple of catches. His replacement though did not quite fare any better.
Jonathan Bairstow (4/10): Coming in as replacement for the ‘rested’ Buttler, Bairstow did not quite make an impact in the three games that he played. His innings of 31 was crucial in the fourth ODI as they held their nerve to register their highest chase against Australia in the history of ODIs. His keeping though left a lot to be desired and had issues keeping to the spin twins, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid.
Moeen Ali (5/10): Ali might feel left out for he was not quite used at his best by England. After having a couple of centuries batting up the order, he was played way down the order at No. 8. To his credit, he looked good in whatever period of time he got to make an impact. It was his bowling though that was more impressive than his batting. He bowled good lines and lengths and got purchase from the wicket. Read: Eoin Morgan praises James Taylor, Adil Rashid, Moen Ali for England’s 93-run win vs Australia in 3rd ODI at Manchester
David Willey (7/10): David Willey made a late appearance in the one-dayers and made immediate impact. His three-wicket haul in the fourth ODI was a key factor in England restricting Australia to a score of just 299 for 7. He was impressive in the final ODI too, having figures of 6-3-13-1! Willey might be a longer rope based on what he has shown so far.
Adil Rashid (6/10): Rashid was a mixed bag for England. While his bowling was brilliant at times, there were a lot many boundary balls on offer from him and he was duly attacked for not bowling well. He lacked control on unhelpful pitches and unlike Ali, he failed to get as much purchase from the decks despite being the preferred spinner. His batting though came in handy for England and he was the lone fighter for them in the final ODI at Old Trafford, Manchester.
Chris Woakes (1/10): Chris Woakes failed to make any impact in the ODI series and was not penetrative enough to cause any damage. He failed to pick up any wicket and eventually lost his place after being injured to Willey who grabbed the opportunity with both hands. Chris Woakes’ injury rules him out of England vs Australia ODI series
Mark Wood (3/10): Mark Wood was far from his best and was in and out of the team as the England management sort to take care of him. The rest though did not help Wood gain any bowling rhythm and between the occasional glimpses of brilliance, Wood was hit all around the park.
Reece Topley (2/10): Giving a debut to Topely in the decider was an interesting choice from England but it did not work out since England batted first and were bowled out for 138. Topely looked good for the first few overs before losing his lines and was taken to the cleaners by the Australian batsmen.
Liam Plunkett (5/10): Liam Plunkett was surprisingly omitted for the final one-dayer but he had decent numbers in the series. He picked up five wickets at an average of 29.80 and was also useful with the bat lower down the order. Dropping him for a decider might game was a mistake since he looked to be in good bowling form.
Steven Finn (4/10): One wonders why Steven Finn was dropped after the first three ODIs, he picked up four wickets at an average of 34.75. He also took a brilliant catch at short mid-wicket to get rid of Steven Smith in the third ODI but was dropped from the side for Mark Wood.
(Nikhil Popat is a diehard cricket enthusiast and a PotterHead till the end of time. He can be followed on Twitter @CricCrazyNIKS)
