Published: Mar 09, 2015, 11:03 PM (IST)
Edited: Mar 10, 2015, 10:26 AM (IST)
The inevitable has happened. England have been knocked out of ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 following their loss against a spirited Bangladesh. England deserved to be thrown out not because they were pathetic, but they simply did not deserve any mercy. To start with, England discovered they are far behind in the rapidly evolving world of limited-overs cricket. Devarchit Varma says England’s issues go beyond their cricketers’ inabilities and failures on the field. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Bangladesh, you’ve earned it
Thank god, the misery is over. If it would have continued for any more long, England cricketers, their reputations and their fans would have had to suffer even more. Perhaps blood, not tears, would have rolled out of their eyes, looking at the shameful new lows the team was hitting every day. England have been kicked out of ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 — and if anyone is surprised why they have not been able to do better despite doing everything in order to bolster their chances — needs a reality check. Five reasons why Bangladesh beat England in ICC Cricket World Cup 2015
ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 will always be remembered for the spirit shown by lowly-ranked sides. War-torn Afghanistan, under-performing Bangladeshis, spirited Ireland, Zimbabwe and even UAE and Scotland to an extent punched above their weights and made the world realise how good cricket they can play on a global stage. But ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 will also be remembered for the misery that England — the country which gave this beloved game of cricket to the world — went through. Bangladesh vs England, ICC World Cup 2015 highlights
England were never going to win ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, but were not expected to crash out so miserably either. Despite arranging a period of five months to prepare — the longest span compared to any of the participating 14 teams — England fizzled out so abjectly that there are genuine questions over their eligibility of participating the next edition of the tournament in their backyard. Yes, the quips about making England go through qualifying round truly make sense when England turn out as sickly as they have.
There was no logic behind discarding a man as passionate as Alastair Cook, but then, there is no stopping a board on a suicide mission. Agree, Cook was nowhere near what you would term as ‘acceptable’. But if there is intent, there will always be success. When there are heart and efforts, there will always be returns of the hard work. Cook has all of it. England, unfortunately, do not believe in all that. They believe, in data. Peter Moores’ quote of depending on ‘data’ sparked another controversy, which will be brushed under the carpet. Does England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) care?
The talks about England suffering because of Kevin Pietersen’s absence have lost all flavour. They are deadening. Pietersen is gone, and no one at ECB talks about him. But then, the mind takes you back to those atrocious strokes, mental frailties, poor attitude, and lack of fight shown by the men who were selected above Pietersen. The mind fails to understand why one of the most talented cricketers England has ever produced is deteriorating, holidaying, and spending time at barbeques when he is needed on the cricket field. In those ‘battles’.
James Anderson and Stuart Broad have been exceptional servants of English cricket. But then, everything has an end, and who knows, they might as well have gone way past their expiry dates. And if the dates have not come yet, where are the wickets? Where are the scenes of ‘hunting in packs’? Where is the English aggression with the ball and where is the mojo that these two enjoyed for a very long time? Will ECB dare to touch the ‘sacred men’ in this team? Did ECB see this coming? Where is the ‘data’ on the non-performers?
Anderson and Broad may not be hunting in packs together, but the ECB has ensured it forms a ‘pack’ to hunt money with the powerful boards such as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Cricket Australia (CA). What ECB does not realise that both BCCI and CA are smart enough to keep a striking difference between their ‘cricket’ and ‘interests’. Their ‘cricket’ in limited-overs is far more evolved and qualitative than England’s. The ‘data’ as simple as of matches won and lost in last 12 months will be self-explanatory.
England may have been humiliated, exposed and ashamed in this World Cup, but the fact is that their flaws go beyond cricket field. Their best cricketers are away from the team, and poor prioritising has resulted in all this. England have had success in Test cricket — where too they have declined, India’s 3-1 mauling was more of the tourists surrendering than England actually doing well. But there is no surety if this will continue in 2015. Mashrafe Mortaza dreams big after Bangladesh’s historic win against England
England play a brand of One-Day International (ODI) cricket that is not only outdated, but is botched up on many fronts. Ridiculous selection policy will be the first point to start with, but the question is, what is it that England really want? England dropped their highest wicket-taker in ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 for a match wherein their survival was at stake. Was Steven Finn dropped because of ‘data’? England’s exit from ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 highlights woes in limited-overs cricket
It’s time England keep aside the ‘interests’ and ask themselves: what is it that they want. The way the South Africans, Indians, Australians and Sri Lankans play limited-overs cricket, it appears that England are behind by generations.
The 2019 World Cup will be organised in England. I doubt the Andersons, the Broads, the Bells or even Cooks and Pietersens will be there to do a good job. Certainly, the likes of Joe Root, Jos Buttler, James Taylor, Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes are the ones for the future. Buttler was shattered — he was seen sitting in the dugout in sheer disbelief, hands on the head, when he got out at a crucial point against Bangladesh. Root comes across as immensely passionate. Taylor may be small in stature but has a big heart. Woakes may have a calm persona but there seems to be a silent monster inside. They all want to win. The real question is: does England cricket want to?
(Devarchit Varma is a reporter with CricketCountry. He can be followed on Twitter @Devarchit)
