The 36th match of World Cup 2023 featured the Ashes rivals, Australia and England. The greatest rivalry, Aus vs Eng, was contested at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Australia had played 6 games and won 4 out of them. On the other hand, the defending champions, England, was struggling throughout the tournament and had won only a single game after playing 6 matches.
Both teams faced each other in 9 matches in the ODI World Cup, and Australia was victorious in 6 of them. However, England secured a notable victory against Australia in the 2019 World Cup semi-final.
Let’s delve into the details of the Australia vs England World Cup 2023 match.
Scorecard
Below is the scorecard of both innings:
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1st Innings
| BATTERS | Runs | Balls | Strike Rate | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Travis Head | 11 | 10 | 110 | 1 | 0 |
| David Warner | 15 | 16 | 93.75 | 1 | 1 |
| Steven Smith | 44 | 52 | 84.61 | 3 | 0 |
| Marnus Labuschagne | 71 | 83 | 85.54 | 7 | 0 |
| Josh Inglis † | 3 | 6 | 50 | 0 | 0 |
| Cameron Green | 47 | 52 | 90.38 | 5 | 0 |
| Marcus Stoinis | 35 | 32 | 109.37 | 3 | 2 |
| Pat Cummins (c) | 10 | 13 | 76.92 | 1 | 0 |
| Mitchell Starc | 10 | 13 | 76.92 | 0 | 0 |
| Adam Zampa | 29 | 19 | 152.63 | 4 | 0 |
| Josh Hazlewood | 1 | 1 | 100 | 0 | 0 |
| Extras | 10 | ||||
| TOTAL | 286 | ||||
| BOWLERS | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Economy | Wickets |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Willey | 10 | 1 | 48 | 4.8 | 1 |
| Chris Woakes | 9.3 | 0 | 54 | 5.68 | 4 |
| Mark Wood | 10 | 0 | 70 | 7 | 2 |
| Liam Livingstone | 6 | 0 | 42 | 7 | 1 |
| Moeen Ali | 4 | 0 | 28 | 7 | 0 |
| Adil Rashid | 10 | 0 | 38 | 3.8 | 2 |
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2nd Innings
| BATTERS | Runs | Balls | Strike Rate | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jonny Bairstow | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dawid Malan | 50 | 64 | 78.12 | 4 | 1 |
| Joe Root | 13 | 17 | 76.47 | 2 | 0 |
| Ben Stokes | 64 | 90 | 71.11 | 2 | 3 |
| Jos Buttler (c)† | 1 | 7 | 14.28 | 0 | 0 |
| Moeen Ali | 42 | 43 | 97.67 | 6 | 0 |
| Liam Livingstone | 2 | 5 | 40 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Woakes | 32 | 33 | 96.96 | 4 | 1 |
| David Willey | 15 | 14 | 107.14 | 3 | 0 |
| Adil Rashid | 20 | 15 | 133.33 | 1 | 1 |
| Mark Wood | 0 | 0 | - | 0 | 0 |
| Extras | 14 | ||||
| TOTAL | 253 | ||||
| BOWLERS | Overs | Maidens | Runs | Wickets | Ecinomy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mitchell Starc | 10 | 0 | 66 | 2 | 6.6 |
| Josh Hazlewood | 9.1 | 1 | 49 | 2 | 5.34 |
| Pat Cummins | 10 | 1 | 49 | 2 | 4.9 |
| Adam Zampa | 10 | 0 | 21 | 3 | 2.1 |
| Travis Head | 5 | 0 | 28 | 0 | 5.6 |
| Marcus Stoinis | 4 | 0 | 34 | 1 | 8.5 |
Toss and Playing XIs
England won the toss and asked Australia to bat first. Both teams entered the ground with the following playing XIs:
Australia’s Playing XI
1. David Warner
2. Travis Head
3. Steven Smith
4. Marnus Labuschagne
5. Josh Inglis (wicket-keeper)
6. Marcus Stoinis
7. Cameron Green
8. Pat Cummins (captain)
9. Mitchell Starc
10. Adam Zampa
11. Josh Hazlewood
England’s Playing XI
1. Jonny Bairstow
2. Dawid Malan
3. Joe Root
4. Ben Stokes
5. Jos Buttler (captain & wicket-keeper)
6. Moeen Ali
7. Liam Livingstone
8. Chris Woakes
9. David Willey
10. Mark Wood
11. Adil Rashid
Australia’s Innings
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Early Blows for the Aussies
The two left-handed batters, Travis Head and David Warner, came to open the innings for Australia. Travis Head, after scoring a boundary in the 1st over, got dismissed in the 2nd over of the innings. Chris Woakes, with a back-of-a-length ball, provided the early breakthrough.
David Warner dispatched a maximum against Woakes in the 6th over. However, Woakes held his nerve and got rid of him, claiming his 2nd wicket. By the end of the powerplay, Australia was 48/2.
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Third Wicket Partnership
Steven Smith and Marnus Labuschange began to advance steadily. Australia completed the 100 runs on the board in the 20th over. Smith, with 4 boundaries, had scored 44 runs when Adil Rashid trapped him.
This 75-run stand between both batters provided the foundation for the Australian innings. Labuschange added 38 runs, including 4 boundaries in this partnership. Aussies were 113/3 when Inglis joined Labuschange on the crease in the Aus vs Eng World Cup 2023 match.
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Top Knock by Labuschange
Josh Inglis couldn’t survive for long, and Rashid dismissed him for 3 runs. However, Labuschange continued to show his batting skills. He completed his half-century in 63 balls with 5 boundaries.
Cameron Green also batted brilliantly and continued building up the partnership with Marnus. In the 31st over, he smashed 2 fours to Mark Wood. However, Wood, in his next over, broke this partnership as he claimed the wicket of Labuschange. Marnus played a brilliant innings of 71 runs.
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The Late Showdown
Green and Stoinis were the last recognized batting pair for the Aussies with almost 16 overs remaining. Stoinis smoked a 6 over deep midwicket, followed by a boundary. Green also continued contributing the runs with his bat. After 40 overs, Australia was 220/5.
In the next over, David Willey got Green as he rattled his leg stump. Stoinis went for a massive 6 and a 4 to Livingstone. Livingstone struck back with a quicker delivery and dismissed him for 35 runs.
Adam Zampa, with a resilient innings, added 29 runs to the team’s total. He lost his wicket in the final over of the match. Woakes went for just 1 run and took 2 wickets. Australia posted 286 runs on the board.
England’s Innings
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Starc Displaying His Dominance
Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan stepped out to open the innings. England’s chase got off with the worst possible start. Mitchell Starc started his spell with a first-ball wicket of Bairstow. It was down the leg, and Inglis appealed after taking a sensational catch.
Joy Root smashed a boundary on the 2nd ball of Starc’s 1st over. Starc dismissed him for a 13-run innings in which he was put down once and narrowly escaped an LBW review. He was eventually caught behind after Australia challenged the initial decision of not out.
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Stokes and Malan’s Sublime Contributions
The two experienced batters were at the crease, and they had to provide momentum in the chase. Ben Stokes and Malan started slowly without taking any risk to play a big shot. After the end of the 1st powerplay, England reached 38 runs with a 6 on the last ball of the over by Malan.
England reached the 50-run mark in the 13th over of the chase. Stokes played a great shot down the ground of Starc and completed the 50 run-stand. England were 82/2 after 20 overs, and the required run rate reached almost 7 runs per over.
Malan charged Stoinis with 2 boundaries in the next over, showing the aggressive intent. Stokes also followed and went after Travis Head in the next over and smashed him for a 6 straight down the ground.
Dawid Malan completed his fifty in 63 balls in the Aus vs Eng match. However, Cummins made the breakthrough after getting his wicket in the 23rd over. The 84-run stand between both left-handers was broken.
Jos Buttler couldn’t contribute much and continued his poor form in this World Cup. Adam Zampa trapped him for just 1 run. It was the 5th time that Zampa got Buttler’s wicket whenever they came face to face.
Stokes continued scoring runs along with Moeen and, with a 6 over deep square, completed his 50 runs. Moeen took responsibility with the bat and scored 3 boundaries in a span of 4 deliveries.
England’s hopes of chasing the target relied on this batting pair, but Adam Zampa ruined their hopes. He dismissed the key batter, Stokes, at the score of 64 runs.
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Lower Order Crumbling
Team England began to scramble after Stoke’s wicket. Liam Livingstone added just 2 runs and got out by Cummins. Moeen Ali went for a slog sweep against Zampa, but he didn’t get enough on the bat and was caught out.
Willey’s brief attacking display was brought to an end by an outstanding catch in the outfield by Zampa. Chris Woakes showed some brilliant batting display. He posted 32 runs with 4 boundaries and a 6.
England were all out for 253 runs and were officially out of contention for the semi-finals. Australia clinched the victory by 33 runs.
Conclusion
Team England found itself in a do-or-die situation against Australia. It was a must-win game for England to remain in the semi-final race. Jos Butler won the toss and decided to bat first in Aus vs Eng World Cup match.
Aussie batters showcased their batting skills and posted 286 runs on the board. Marnus Labuschange was the top scorer with 71 runs. Chris Woakes was the most economical bowler and took 4 wickets in his 10 overs.
England had a shaky start and lost its two main players for just 19 runs. Stokes and Malan steered the match toward a promising chase, but the dismissals of both players shattered their hopes of victory. Adam Zampa, with his figures of 3/21, was declared the Player of the Match.
