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England began to strike after eight overs. The cheering Lord’s assembly was enthralled with Jofra Archer’s thunderbolts directed towards Australia. It felt a lot like a 2019 homage at Lord’s on Friday.
By the way, what days that were. Pre-pandemic, sweltering summers, Oasis still in disarray, and England—led by Eoin Morgan—not only emerged as ODI world champions but also established a new benchmark in white-ball cricket.
In the last five years, a lot has changed, and not always for the better. However, this fourth ODI was a modern ensemble reimagining old-world greatness, available for one night only at rates close to the Gallagher reunion. This was a bygone period of supremacy, even though it was just 39 overs a side, amid circumstances that suggested the cricket season ought to have ended weeks ago. With nine players from that November 2023 final still in their squad, Australia, the current 50-over world champions, were defeated by England by 186 runs, their second-largest margin of victory.
“That was a pretty special performance,” Harry Brook, England’s stand-in captain, said, after his team had drawn level despite Australia storming to a 2-0 lead. “All bases were covered there tonight.”
Following an unbroken 110 in Durham, Brook himself led the way at the bat, topping the score with 87 from just 58 deliveries. Though it was eclipsed by Liam Livingstone’s bombast, his fourth fifty-plus score in the format was his season high point (“it’s definitely the best I’ve hit it this summer”).
English cockles were warmed by Livingstone’s 25-ball fifty, especially when he hammered Mitchell Starc for four sixes and a last-ball four in the last over of the first innings. A contemporary master at the white ball, the left-arm seamer now has the disgrace of being the owner of the highest men’s ODI over that an Australian has ever produced.
That late rush contrasted with a cautious beginning. In the eight-over powerplay, Josh Hazlewood opened from the Nursery End with a maiden, keeping Ben Duckett and Phil Salt sufficiently quiet to guarantee that only three fours were hit. It was unclear how the wicket column stayed in place.
However, England came out of this chapter eager to make that good fortune last. The shift in gears was catastrophic, even if Salt and Will Jacks fell in the span of 25 deliveries. While Jamie Smith’s 30 from 22 in a fourth-wicket stand of 75 off 47, and Duckett’s 30 off 20 in their stand of 79 (the left-hander eventually dismissed for 63) provided the main conduit, these two batsmen duo encapsulated the partnership that five years ago propelled England to the summit of the limited-overs mountain.
The objective of England’s attack embodied the clinical quality of their batting, as was often the case in those days. Australia’s white-ball success over the past four years has been greatly attributed to Adam Zampa, so in true prison-yard fashion, the hosts opted to take him out. With an economy rate of 8.25, the legspinner’s eight-over stint ended with two wickets but 66 runs conceded. This makes his period the seventh most costly of his 97 ODI innings in which he bowled five or more overs.
England was always favourites heading into the second innings, with 312 on the board, “way over” Brook’s intended objective after losing the toss. However, the match was changing when Travis Head hit Brydon Carse with a ball that went for 19 on the last ball of the seventh over. After that, England’s quicks turned the tables on Australia, taking nine of their ten wickets at a cost of just 58 runs.
If the nature of the surface changed during Australia’s innings, England took advantage of it with a fantastic spell of seam bowling from Carse, Archer, and Matthew Potts. Potts had the most striking numbers with four wickets, including the second-best wicket of the series from Steven Smith. However, the competition for the best dismissal of the night was between Archer and Carse.
The latter’s nip down the slope from a decent length to do the same to Marnus Labuschagne’s may have been superior to the former’s leg-cutter to flatten Mitchell Marsh’s off stump. However, Archer demanded more attention when he played back-to-back ODIs for the first time since his most recent recovery from elbow problems.
Archer’s exploits at Lord’s shaped a lot of the 2019 summer, from the Super Over in that breathtaking final against New Zealand to that jaw-droppingly rapid display in the second Ashes Test. The most impressive part of his display was how he handled the white ball, but the real show stealer was the quick rising delivery that struck Labuschagne in the arm. It brought to mind the blow to the batter’s helmet he delivered in that second Ashes Test, a moment that happened only after Labuschagne had replaced him due to a concussion.
But the truth is that this is an Australian side that has suffered injuries and setbacks. To a man, they are prepared for their own summertime blockbuster and are eager to head home. This outcome might not even matter if the predictions for Sunday’s championship game in Bristol come true.
But this was an evening to remember in terms of England’s 50-over aspirations. The fact that the future appears more promising after a performance that embodies the best qualities of the past is maybe the greatest compliment one can give.