World Cup tables turn after India’s loss to England

The World Cup contenders will look to fight for semi-finals spot; Bangladesh preps for big game against India on July 2

The tables for the Men in Blue turned drastically as England handed them the very historic World Cup defeat, ending India’s unbeaten streak in this tournament. England was seen playing for pride as they left no stones unturned looking to seal a semi-final spot in the World Cup. But now after this defeat, India will be looking assess the situation and analyze where things went wrong and what all needs to be improved. India will now be playing against Bangladesh on the same ground at Birmingham on July 2.

After a comfortable 62-run win against Afghanistan, Bangladesh will be ready to face a stiff challenge against India. But the team will be a bit motivated as India just lost to England which has turned out to be a big scenario for all the oppositions.

Turnaround time

For Bangladesh, things surely look a bit daunting as they have last chance to revive their semi-finals hope for World Cup. The team has won 3 out of 7 matches so far. The batting line-up which is led by Shakib-Al-Hasan is kind of a revelation for all of us. And now they have two most difficult matches coming up.

They will be playing India, which is the world number one cricket team and after that, they will be playing against a resurgent Pakistan. If Bangladesh manages to secure both the wins, then the team will end up with 11 points and look for England not winning more than one game.

Mushfiqur Rahim has been playing some inspiring cricket in the tournament by scoring runs like 102, 83, 44 so far. And if the player keeps this pace, he can become destructive for Indian bowlers in the middle overs. And since Bangladesh has a long 6-day break before the big game, the team is planning and working out on plans to bring down the Indian line-up as well.

India will look for complete performance

Against England, India was average with the ball and the bat. After losing the toss, India was out there to field and Yuzvendra Chahal became the most expensive bowler with an economy of 8.8 clinching no wickets. Shami’s magical fifer was a sigh of relief but England built a huge score of 337 runs.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni failed to do justice to his reputation as a 'finisher' and played really slow. He managed to hit a six in the last over which actually held no importance as India had essentially lost the game way before that.

Rishabh Pant was playing his World Cup debut against England and he was trying really hard to score runs. But since it was his first, he was playing under pressure, but he will surely rise higher in the coming matches as he just needs a bit of exposure. India’s opening attack needs to be stronger as with Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul should also go out there and score big. The middle order is still a concern but there is no solution that we are seeing that the skipper is able to find out.

Predictions of semi-finals after India lost to England

Australia

Australia are already through to the semifinals and have consolidated their position at the top with 14 points from eight games. Australia owes much of their serene progress to the red-hot form of paceman Mitchell Starc, who is leading the wicket tally with 24 wickets in this tournament.

India

Even though India has lost to England, its chances of moving into World Cup semi-finals will remain as bright as sunlight and will likely stay on the second spot with 11 points from 7 games. But this will stay only if the team doesn’t lose by big margins. From now on, the Men in Blue will need to win just one more from the two matches to get qualified for the semi-finals.

If they lose the remaining two against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, then the team will depend on the net run rate to thump their progress.

New Zealand

New Zealand had one hope of getting stronger in the race for semi-finals only if India beats England. But that is no more the situation as India faced a clean defeat. And now New Zealand will have to play a must-win game against England on July 3 in their final group stage.

New Zealand right now is at the third spot with 11 points from 8 matches and can get knocked out of the World Cup if they lose to England with a huge difference.

England

The Englishmen are right now at the fourth position on the points table with 10 points. And there is going to be a tough fight on July 3 when England will meet the Black Caps. The teams will fight hard to seal a semi-finals spot in the World Cup. Their win has pushed Pakistan to the fifth spot.

Pakistan

Pakistan fans were seen cheering Indian players when the team was playing against England. The fans were looking out for India to collect straight points but that just didn’t turn out. Now that England has defeated India, Pakistan will be desperately looking to beat Bangladesh in the final group-stage match on July 5. For Pakistan to get into semi-finals, they will hope England to lose to New Zealand otherwise, the team will get out of the World Cup.

Sri Lanka

India’s loss to England is going to adversely affect Sri Lanka. Right now with 6 points, the team will need to win their two upcoming matches against West Indies and India on July 1 and July 6. But at the same time, England’s win has made Sri Lanka’s semi-finals qualification chances narrower as the team has a very humiliating run-rate.

Bangladesh

For Bangladesh, it is nothing but a do or die situation as they will have to beat India and Pakistan to keep alive the semi-finals chances. And now that England’s win over India has turned the tables, the chances are difficult as England can snatch big 12 points.

But even if Bangladesh manage to win these two matches, it will not suffice as England will be a point ahead of them.

With India’s loss to England, things have changed upside-down completely and the teams will be fighting for the semi-finals spot for the World Cup. So far so unpredictable, let’s watch out what the World Cup tournament has in store for the cricketing fans.