In Bengaluru, at about five o’clock in the evening, as the sun began to set, Mark Wood appeared with a move that England had all but trademarked: swinging for the fences. The home team was nine wickets behind for just 156 runs in the innings. In the context of England’s audacious and aggressive style of play, this scenario was not unusual. But Mark Wood’s attack was quickly rebuffed, a scene that has become all too familiar lately.
Before Wood’s explosive performance, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Jonny Bairstow, and Jos Buttler had all been defeated by the much-maligned aggressive style. With every wicket that fell, there was a chance to see another of England’s legendary comebacks.
Could Joe Root keep things afloat? Would Bairstow fulfil his vows at last, like he had done all throughout the competition? Was this World Cup Jos Buttler’s moment to shine? Maybe Liam Livingstone could go on one of his infamous hitting binges? Would Moeen Ali save the day for the team as a whole or just for himself? Or would Ben Stokes, in his unique way, pull off the extraordinary?
The playing conditions in this particular match, and possibly on this specific pitch, seemed ideal for England’s style of play. The boundaries were still enticingly short, and they faced a bowling assault that had recovered somewhat from its World Cup-long slump at the bottom of the economy rate rankings. Even with their 24-year World Cup winless streak against Sri Lanka, this was the matchup where they may expect to write a turnaround similar to their 2019 victory.
The only difference between this match and the previous one at the same venue, where over 650 runs were scored, was the pitch – slower and less conducive to England’s trademark aggressive approach. However, the outcome was far from predictable, not only for this match but for England’s entire tournament. The prospect of a comeback always loomed on the horizon.
Sadly, every tactic they attempted to employ—and they experimented with every resource at their disposal, fielding every member of their team at some point—proved to be fruitless. Plans have to be changed when errors were made during the toss and selecting process. Even as the defending World Champions, England’s strategy remained the same despite the unfavourable conditions that persisted throughout the tournament. Buttler made it clear early on that ‘defending’ was unacceptable.
As wickets continued to tumble against a resurgent Sri Lankan attack, hope rapidly transformed into despair, leaving both spectators and the England team bewildered. In the words of a disheartened Buttler, “To be sat here now with the three weeks that I’ve been [through] is a shock. It’s a shock to everyone. I’ll walk back in the dressing room after this and look at the players sat there and think how we found ourselves in this position with the talent and the skill that’s in the room. But it is the position we’re in, the reality of what’s happened over the last three weeks and that’s a huge low point.”
England, and Buttler, can be given credit for sticking to their tried-and-tested approach, even though it attracted some ridicule regarding their chances in the tournament. Many had considered the aging team as potential title contenders. The rapid fall from grace, however, was not due to complacency, as Buttler asserted.
As England reflects on the disheartening conclusion of their golden era, the anticipation and challenges of rebuilding for the World Cup 2023 loom large.
“Yeah, I think in any sport or anything, you can’t protect anything or rely on the past, you have to go and create something new every time. We know that as players, we touch on experience and things, having banked stuff before, but something we discussed a lot as a team that you have to go and create it again. You can’t rest on your laurels or try and protect something, try and protect an image or protect something as a team. And that’s why, at the beginning of the tournament, I said we weren’t here to try and defend our title. We’re here to start something new and try and win something,” he explained.
In terms of unmet expectations, their performance in the tournament could arguably be ranked as one of the most disappointing in the history of the ODI World Cup, given the many things that went awry. Buttler pointed out that there are no quick fixes for their predicament.
“This tournament’s gone nowhere near the way we wanted to. It’s been a huge disappointment. If there was one golden egg that we were missing, then you’d hope to see that. But there is no secret, I don’t think. There’s no one else who can score your runs or take your wickets. That comes from the start, from the captain at the front. I’ve been a long way short of my best. As a leader, you want to lead through your performance and I’ve been unable to do that,” he admitted.
When asked if he could lead going forward, Buttler’s response was concise, reflecting the frustration of a day where England’s series of mistakes throughout the tournament were brought into sharp focus.
As they search for a mathematical chance to reach the knockout stage, the unavoidable thought looms that this might be how England’s golden era ends. They may still be remembered for their remarkable run of reaching the knockouts in every ICC white-ball tournament since 2016, including two titles. However, the twilight of their dominance has come far sooner than anticipated.