England have been playing one-day international cricket since 1971. The Three Lions lost the first-ever ODI in history to arch-rivals Australia in Melbourne. That five-wicket loss set the tone for what was to come.
From there to mid-2015, their 1992 World Cup final appearance against Pakistan aside, 50-over competition had been the Achilles heel of English Cricket. Those heels dragged along for too long, leaving a trail of failures.
England chopped, changed and searched for answers to get better, but other ODI nations progressed to extend that withering trail.
Winding the clock back doesn’t bring to the fore resplendent memories for England fans but it’s worth reminding that for all the disappointments that were easier to shrug off, three years and one day ago to be precise, the nation’s cricket lovers experienced what it felt like to hit rock bottom. That came when Bangladesh paceman Rubel Hossain had just sent James Anderson’s stumps flying into the Adelaide abyss and the Tigers celebrated a famous 15-run victory in the 2015 World Cup, sending Eoin Morgan’s men crashing out in the group stages.
At that moment, English Cricket was on its knees but sometimes in life those moments – although they may not feel like that at the time – shape one’s destiny. The barometer back then was so low that it gave England the chance to draw a line under the past and get to grips with the blood and thunder attacking style of the modern game.
It’s taken three years to change the atmospheric pressure on that same barometer as a result of steady building under Morgan and head coach Trevor Bayliss, but it’s now England who are pressuring those around them to keep pace ahead of the 2019 World Cup on their own patch.
Saturday’s victory over New Zealand at the Hagley Oval sealed a 3-2 series success, England’s sixth on the bounce and ninth out of their past 10 ODI assignments. Time will fly until next May, and if England can sustain this level of form, in home conditions, hopes of a maiden 50-over World Cup triumph should spring eternal.
Century-maker Jonny Bairstow celebrates in Christchurch.
South Africa and India are among those who will provide strong challenges, whereas Pakistan cannot be ruled out given their ability to conjure up brilliance out of nothing and spoil a party – much like they did in the summer of 2016 when they knocked out Champions Trophy favourites England, in their own backyard, en-route to that famous final win against India at the Oval.
Too often optimism can lead to a false dawn but this feels different, England have done a lot of the ground work and talking already. Their side is made up of cricketers who back themselves to perform and deliver in those pressure moments, on the biggest stages. Jonny Bairstow, a case in point. Two back-to-back centuries, with his knock of 104 from 58 balls being the third-fastest ton by an Englishman, cementing his opener spot.
He is just one man in a line-up of settled cricketers who all seem clear with their role in the side, whether with bat and ball, and how they bring that together to the fore as a cohesive unit. Having a man with the star quality of Ben Stokes to call upon is of course a huge thing too.
Given the frenetic pace of the cricketing calendar things can unravel and change quickly but that shouldn’t worry England in the slightest as they are exactly where they want to be as an ODI force ahead of further challenges to come against Australia and India at home this summer. Big strides are being made towards the end goal.
