🔗 Share this article

England have been eliminated from the World Cup after losing a match they were expected to win, due to a one-off innings which nobody saw coming. Sound familiar? This is because it describes two events involving England which took place almost exactly a year separated: recently, their ODI World Cup semi-final loss at the hands of South Africa; a year ago, their defeat in a crucial group stage match against West Indies in the 20-over version.

The Interim Period

In the interim, there was a whitewash in the Ashes and a post-series review which was intended to overhaul the system. Was it successful? Let’s look a little more deeply into those two World Cup eliminations. In 2024, England fell to pieces, dropped five catches, and allowed a bish-bash-bosh innings from Qiana Joseph to win the day. In the latest match, a player with superb skill and composure – the South Africa captain, Laura Wolvaardt – demonstrated why she is one of the world’s best batters. She gave precisely one chance – a catch to Alice Capsey at long-on – and England took it. Unfortunately, she had already scored 169 runs by that point.

‘It’s painful’: The coach turns to next generation after England’s World Cup defeat.

This may not offer the England head coach, Charlotte Edwards, much consolation as she flies home from her first World Cup in charge – she is a performance-focused leader, and a loss is a loss. But she has already made a difference. From the doldrums of dropping eight catches in a single day of Test cricket in Melbourne, six months later England secured more chances this World Cup than any other team. That is something.

The Batting Collapse

The problem was what came after Wolvaardt’s knock. Was there anyone inside that England dressing room truly confident they were able to reach a total of more than 300? Certainly no one outside it did. England’s rapid decline to nought for two and 1/3 sparked a reaction not of horror but of resigned acceptance.

“We do need to enhance our batting performance – I don’t think it’s been reliable at times,” Edwards said after the match. This highlights the problem. There have been multiple totals of more than 300 in this tournament: three of them were hit by Australia, three by India, and two by South Africa. This is the new normal in women’s ODI cricket: in order to compete with the world’s best, England need a batting order which can realistically aim to surpass 300 runs. But when only Nat Sciver-Brunt and Heather Knight has a track record of regularly making meaningful runs, well, the numbers speak for themselves.

Partnership Efforts

Capsey’s 105-run partnership with Sciver-Brunt in the semi-final wasn’t entirely pointless – Capsey showed that she can bat sensibly, at least for 70 balls – but it was insufficient to win the game. Compare and contrast with South Africa, who were able to add 117 runs from their last 10 overs, exceeding the magic 300, because Wolvaardt had faith in the batters following her and felt she had enough freedom to attack. “Knowing what we still had in the sheds with the last 10 coming up, I thought I’d better have a swing,” she explained to Sky Sports.

Heather Knight and Nat Sciver-Brunt were the sole consistent performers to deliver regularly during the tournament.

Coaching Dilemmas

When Edwards was hired in April, her challenge was whether to stick or twist: she chose to allow an veteran team who had struggled previously one last shot at World Cup glory. This proved incorrect. England return home with the worst of both worlds: empty-handed, and with little basis on which to rebuild over the next four years. Five of their top six from the semi-final are unlikely to play in another 50-over World Cup.

A new strategy is now imminent, as Edwards herself indicated. “This is the conclusion of a phase,” she said. “We’ve got to focus ahead now.”

Future Prospects

Better late than never: time to look seriously at the young left-hander Grace Scrivens, the young wicketkeeper Seren Smale and the 18-year-old left-arm spinner Tilly Corteen-Coleman.

A persistent concern is that it might already be too late: England’s most recent set of central contracts were signed, sealed and delivered on 1 October. The governing body has not yet published a full list of contracted players, but it doesn’t take a genius to work out that the current World Cup squad are the main beneficiaries.

The Path Ahead

Lack of progress and overconfidence were the twin problems on which the Ashes sweep was built – it’s crucial for Edwards to demonstrate that she is serious about preventing their return.