ODI Champions ace T20I test: England Tournament Review
Most Runs: Jos Buttler
Most Wickets: Sam Curran
What went right?
Everything, starting from planning to execution! They did face a few hiccups initially as they edged past Afghanistan in their tournament opener, lost a rain-hit encounter to Ireland, and then their crucial match against Australia got called off due to rain as well. But Jos Buttler's men pulled up their socks soon as their performance peaked just at the right time.
They defeated New Zealand comprehensively, passed Sri Lanka's spin test in their last Super 12 encounter, completely mauled India in the semi-finals and finally held their nerves to ace a low-scoring contest in the final against Pakistan.
Almost every member played their role to perfection. Make no mistake, this was a team without formidable T20 forces like Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy and Jofra Archer. In fact, they also lost Dawid Malan and Mark Wood to injuries just before the semi-finals.
But the fringe players like Chris Jordan and Phil Salt stepped up in their absence. Jordan claimed five wickets in the knockouts and didn't let England feel Wood's absence at all. Overall, it was a performance the entire unit and the upcoming generations can be proud of.
What went wrong?
England did little wrong once the tournament entered its business end but they were a little slow to start off. The win over Afghanistan in their tournament opener wasn't convincing as the Afghans made them toil hard for more than 18 overs to chase down 113.
Although rain played spoilsport in their match against Ireland and didn't let them bat their full quota of overs, England were behind on run rate and they had also allowed Ireland to post a big total.
Luck wasn't favouring them much either as their game against Australia got washed out and they lost Malan and Wood to injuries at a crucial stage of the tournament. Both could have become hurdles in their path to secure a semi-final berth but they turned things around with hard work, confidence and the will to win.
What does the future hold?
England have now become the first team to hold the ODI and the T20 World Cup simultaneously. They have now proven themselves as a formidable force in white-ball cricket and will be looking to continue their rampage ahead.
They have developed a vast pool of T20 talent and that was visible in this World Cup as they delivered a superb performance even with key players missing. The team management and the think tank now need to nurture and develop the talents in the same way, so that they can dominate even in the 2024 T20 World Cup, which is set to be played in the Caribbean and the United States.
