- England have lost three of their first four matches at the Cricket World Cup
- Needing a win against Sri Lanka, they dropped the bat in Bangalore
- Fans have criticized the team for their ’embarrassing’ performance
England’s cricketers have been criticized by supporters on social media after another terrible performance with the bat against Sri Lanka in the Cricket World Cup.
Playing in their fifth match of the tournament, Jos Buttler’s men went into the match knowing they needed a win after losing three of their previous four matches.
But after terrible batting against Afghanistan and South Africa, England collapsed again in Bangalore when they were bowled out for 156.
Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan had given the defending champions a solid start when they put on 45 for the first wicket, but when the latter fell behind, England fell apart.
Joe Root was sent off after a mix-up in the middle, Bairstow chipped calmly into the middle, before Buttler, Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes also came and went without hardly causing the goalscorers any trouble.
Joe Root fell just three short as England collapsed against Sri Lanka in Bangalore
Jos Buttler failed again with the bat and his team now looks set to bow out of the World Cup
Ben Stokes put up some resistance with a gritty 43 but he was then caught in the deep, with Adil Rashid soon afterwards run out at the non-striker’s end after a major lapse in concentration to leave England 147 for nine.
David Willey and Mark Wood took England past 150 but the latter was stunned after storming down the wicket to end the side’s woes with the bat.
England’s World Cup hopes are now hanging by the tiniest thread, with fans bitterly disappointed by the performance of the team in India.
“England cricket is bloody awful,” one fan wrote on X, summing up the feelings of supporters across the country.
Another fan suggested England want to finish the tournament early, although they won’t be so lucky as they still have four matches to play after today.
‘Is England trying to get an earlier flight home or something? This is terrible…’ they wrote.
Another fan simply couldn’t believe what they were watching and called Livingstone after unsuccessfully reviewing an lbw call against him.
‘Completely embarrassing cricket from England, and what a terrible review from Livingstone. What the hell are they doing?’ they asked.
England enjoyed the most successful period in their one-day history between 2015 and 2019 as Eoin Morgan’s men took the game to the opposition, culminating in a World Cup win at Lord’s four years ago.
Many from that team have stayed together since, but one fan claimed England have now reached the ‘end of an era’.
Ben Stokes put up some resistance but fell for 43 as England crumbled in the heat
Adil Rashid was embarrassingly taken out after cutting out at the non-striker’s end
‘England is terrible, end of an era. Changes need to be made, everyone is basically out of shape,” she added.
Former Test captain Root recently suggested England should prioritize playing more one-day cricket at home by getting rid of the T20 Blast.
One supporter had a different idea, calling for drastic changes to get the country’s over-50s back on track.
‘@ECB_cricket may be the worst English team I have known in my adult life. Please leave the hundred behind and make 50 a priority over cricket. These performances are terrible and embarrassing,” they stated.