A week ago people were worried about dead rubbers.
The International Cricket Council have Sri Lanka to thank for changing the conversation, because with England meeting Australia at Lords tomorrow that concern is nowhere near the top of the agenda.
Englands defeat on Friday has put the cat amongst the pigeons, upping the ante and turning up the pressure on the World Cup favourites to remind everyone just why they hold that tag.
Read more: Betting tips: Smith and Warner to show what Australia have been missing
The hosts situation – sitting in fourth place with their remaining games against the current top three of Australia, India and New Zealand – means sandpaper shouldnt matter either, despite Eoin Morgan stirring the pot by saying fans can “do what they want” in reaction to the presence of Steve Smith and David Warner.
This is the perfect set up for the match: a heady mix mix of back-story, rivalry and, crucially, importance to the points table. While England dont absolutely need to win to secure a semi-final place, they wont want to leave progression down to their results against the only two currently unbeaten sides.
Its amazing how the pendulum can swing in sport. England have spent the last four years beating all comers, climbing the one-day international rankings and developing an aggressive, effective style of play. Australia, meanwhile, have endured plenty of bumps in the road since their 2015 World Cup win, with Smith and Warners one-year ban for ball-tampering contributing to an identity crisis of sorts.
England may have lost a warm-up match last month but they have won nine of the last 10 ODIs between the two teams. Australia, meanwhile, have admitted to trying and failing to copy their game-plan.
And yet they meet tomorrow with the narrative not quite turned on its head, but certainly vastly altered.
The nature of the 20-run defeat by Sri Lanka and the ongoing absence of key opener Jason Roy means the usually impenetrable armour of England is now showing areas of weakness.
With openers Warner and Aaron Finch having posted 843 runs in 12 innings at a combined average of 70.25 and Mitchell Starc in prolific form, with 15 wickets at 20.26, Australia undoubtedly have the weapons to exploit them.
A green-tinged pitch, which has to hold up for Australias tie against New Zealand on Saturday, means Starc and Pat Cummins may well get a surface which suits them nicely. Lords has historically been a happy hunting ground for Australia too, with eight ODI wins to Englands five in head-to-head contests at the venue since 1972.
A week ago people were worried about dead rubbers.
The International Cricket Council have Sri Lanka to thank for changing the conversation, because with England meeting Australia at Lords tomorrow that concern is nowhere near the top of the agenda.
Englands defeat on Friday has put the cat amongst the pigeons, upping the ante and turning up the pressure on the World Cup favourites to remind everyone just why they hold that tag.
Read more: Betting tips: Smith and Warner to show what Australia have been missing
The hosts situation – sitting in fourth place with their remaining games against the current top three of Australia, India and New Zealand – means sandpaper shouldnt matter either, despite Eoin Morgan stirring the pot by saying fans can “do what they want” in reaction to the presence of Steve Smith and David Warner.
This is the perfect set up for the match: a heady mix mix of back-story, rivalry and, crucially, importance to the points table. While England dont absolutely need to win to secure a semi-final place, they wont want to leave progression down to their results against the only two currently unbeaten sides.
Its amazing how the pendulum can swing in sport. England have spent the last four years beating all comers, climbing the one-day international rankings and developing an aggressive, effective style of play. Australia, meanwhile, have endured plenty of bumps in the road since their 2015 World Cup win, with Smith and Warners one-year ban for ball-tampering contributing to an identity crisis of sorts.
England may have lost a warm-up match last month but they have won nine of the last 10 ODIs between the two teams. Australia, meanwhile, have admitted to trying and failing to copy their game-plan.
And yet they meet tomorrow with the narrative not quite turned on its head, but certainly vastly altered.
The nature of the 20-run defeat by Sri Lanka and the ongoing absence of key opener Jason Roy means the usually impenetrable armour of England is now showing areas of weakness.
With openers Warner and Aaron Finch having posted 843 runs in 12 innings at a combined average of 70.25 and Mitchell Starc in prolific form, with 15 wickets at 20.26, Australia undoubtedly have the weapons to exploit them.
A green-tinged pitch, which has to hold up for Australias tie against New Zealand on Saturday, means Starc and Pat Cummins may well get a surface which suits them nicely. Lords has historically been a happy hunting ground for Australia too, with eight ODI wins to Englands five in head-to-head contests at the venue since 1972.
