ODI World Cup 2023: Champions England on brink of exit after another EMBARRASSING show as SL win by 8 wickets

Defending champions England are on the brink of an early exit from the ODI World Cup after another embarrassing show against Sri Lanka in the south Indian city ofBengaluru.

England needed a win to keep their hopes alive in the tournament but lost by eight wickets.

The win also puts Sri Lanka back in contention for a place in the semifinal while England’s chances are remote considering their Net Run Rate (NRR) has taken a massive hit, with four matches remaining in the league stage.

England collapse against Sri Lanka

Jos Buttler’s army was tasked to defend 157 after another embarrassing show with the bat in Bengaluru. Derailed by the returning Angelo Matthews and the lethal bowling of Lahiru Kumara, England lost early wickets in their innings to hand Sri Lanka an early advantage. Matthews along with Kasun Rajitha picked up two wickets each with Maheesh Theekshana getting one. Ben Stokes was the top run-getter for England with 43 while openers Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow put in 45 runs for the opening wicket.

With no herculean run chase on offer, Sri Lanka chased the target in 25.4 overs as Pathum Nissanka (unbeaten 77) and Sadeera Samarawickrama (65) stitched an unbeaten 137-run stand to win the match. David Willey scalped two wickets during his spell but other senior bowlers did not give competition to hand Sri Lanka an easy win. This also helped them boost their NRR with close competition for the semifinals expected.

What else is left in tournament?

With chances of making the semis very slim England will look to get the best possible result from their remaining four matches. They will play hosts India on Sunday in Lucknow while Australia and Pakistan also await them in their remaining matches. Their clash against the Netherlands on Wednesday (Nov 8) could be a dead rubber counting they lose either of India or Australia clash.

Sri Lanka after the win fifth in the standings with four points and will look to end the campaign on a high as they too scramble for a place in the last four. They will face Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, and New Zealand in their remaining four matches of the World Cup.