Riding on a century from Test skipper Joe Root and a half-century from ODI skipper Eoin Morgan – England took a sweet revenge against Bangladesh for the loss which they suffered in World Cup 2015 – to hand them a defeat and make their next two games almost must win one in the Champions Trophy.
For the first half plus opening 2.3 overs of England’s innings, the visiting side seemed to be favourite due to the fact that Bangladesh had a piled up a total of 305 on the board with a loss of six wickets.
England had to create history, as, in past, a total of 300 was never chased but England didn’t just register their name in history books but also put up a strong foot ahead to blossom their future in the tournament.
England skipper won the toss and decided to bowl first, a decision seemed to be correct when Bangladesh made a slow start but they were soon charged up and were getting runs.
It was the first over from all-rounder Ben Stokes, where Soumya Sarkar handed an easy catch to Jonny Bairstow to get him dismissed. Another wicket followed after a distance but the experienced duo of Tamim Iqbal and Mushfiqur Rahim shared 166 runs to steer the team to a total close to 300.
Just when it seemed like they are starting to charge up the run rate, both of them were dismissed on consecutive deliveries which had an impact on their batting later.
England did not have a good start in the race to a huge total of 306, as Jason Roy disappointed once again but the trio of Alex Hales (95), Joe Root (133*) and Eoin Morgan (45*) showed that consistency the key which they have, and which Bangladesh lack.
It was an impressive win for them, as England was playing with one player short, as Chris Woakes left the field due to injury after bowling just two overs and also would not have come out to bat. In short, it was a dominating picture from England where they showed just a trailer of what they can do in future.
Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza felt that the target was a bit low and should have been more – a defendable one as he said –
“I think 305 was a little bit short. We could not get wickets in the middle overs. Root batted pretty well and took the game away from us. Initially, the wicket can swing and the batsmen can take time but with 7 wickets in hands we could have got some runs in the end. We will have to think about it (the team combination). We have to think about extra bowlers as well. The third umpire knows better than us.”