West Indies are making Group C look plain sailing, England are all at sea. Like, by and large, the ball (unless it was arrowing towards a fielder), England’s pursuit of a target of 197 never got off the ground, and after a largely pedestrian performance veered towards the end into a bilious combination of slapstick and horror they had been dismissed for 166 and, with seven balls remaining, been beaten by 30 runs.
Had the knife-edge result against Nepal on Sunday fallen the other way this would already be another crisis in a winter full of them. As it is they will head to Kolkata, where they complete their group fixtures against Scotland and Italy, confident given the nature of their opponents of securing the wins they require to progress to the Super Eights but knowing they can afford no further stumbles.
West Indies’ total of 196 was the third biggest of a World Cup still marked by largely moderate scoring, but it did not cause their opponents to be at all frantic. As a result England’s pursuit was always going to be judged either admirably or as puzzlingly calm, depending on its outcome.
Even as their task grew increasingly difficult, and until it blundered into the realms of the truly far-fetched – duly inspiring a couple of manic run‑outs – there was no sense of panic, few wild swings and swipes.
“One thing I would say is we were probably a little bit careful,” the England captain, Harry Brook, said. “With the power we had at the back end, myself included, I could have taken a risk a little bit earlier.
“With that power and depth we have, we do think we can chase almost anything. Obviously today we didn’t.”
Perhaps they were comforted by their comparatively brisk early scoring – they stood at 67 for one at the end of the powerplay where West Indies had been 55 for three, and 93 for four at the halfway stage where their opponents had been 79 for four – but given the success enjoyed by Sherfane Rutherford and Jason Holder in particular as the first innings neared its conclusion, this was only storing up trouble.
Clearly, England felt they had the players to do it, and unshakeable faith that one or more among them would settle down, get their eye in and start peppering the stands. The problem was that none did, and with Jamie Overton lasting just six balls, Tom Banton four and Will Jacks three, for all their vaunted depth England were swiftly scraping their toes in the shallow end.
They struggled particularly during 12 overs of spin in which six wickets fell and their innings veered definitively off course, though Brook insisted this was freakish rather than fragility. “We played spin outstanding in Sri Lanka,” he said of their recent white-ball series against the co-hosts. “We’ve just had a bad day today.”
With only Jacob Bethell and Sam Curran, who top-scored with 43, facing as many as 15 balls theirs was an innings that lacked outstanding individuals and destructive partnerships.
By contrast Rutherford had led the way for West Indies, starting slow – after 13 deliveries he had scored only 10, off his next 16 he added 43 – before accelerating to finish unbeaten with 76 off 42.
Really, though, their innings was a tale of three partnerships: Roston Chase and Shimron Hetmyer combined for 47 off 28, then Rutherford added 51 off 29 balls with Rovman Powell – despite Powell scoring a sober 14 off 13 – and another 61 off 32 with the free-scoring Holder, who finished with 33 off 17.
For England supporters concerned that disappointing performances against Nepal presaged an extended period of poor form for Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid, the evening brought only partial reassurance. Rashid, after a rare wicketless outing in the opener, was back to his sparkling best, taking two wickets and conceding just 16 runs in four excellent overs.
But news of Archer was less positive: another 48 runs conceded, and of the 133 bowlers used in the tournament so far only USA’s Saurabh Netravalkar has been more expensive. He did pick up the wicket of Shai Hope, but with a short, wide delivery that was asking to be hit, and not necessarily straight to Banton at cover.
“Everybody knows how good Jof is,” Brook said. “He’ll bounce back for sure.”