Cricket World Cup 2023: England Thrash Pakistan By 93 Runs To End Campaign On A High

England joined the party after everything was done and dusted, finding enough reasons to smile while humiliating a demotivated Pakistan by 93 runs in their final World Cup game in Kolkata on Saturday. By virtue of winning their last two games, England finished seventh in the 10-team table and qualified for the Champions Trophy, scheduled in Pakistan in 2025. Pakistan's improbable hopes of a semi-final qualification were dashed the moment England batted first and scored 337 for nine in 50 overs.

Pakistan, in response, managed only 244 runs in 43.3 overs as their batters were neither able to pick Adil Rashid's (2/55 in 10 overs) googlies nor retiring David Willey's (3/56 in 10 overs) incisive swinging deliveries.

There was no chance in hell of Pakistan making the cut because even if their batters had hit 40 consecutive sixes in 6.4 overs, they wouldn't have surpassed England's total and topple New Zealand on net run rate.

The academic interest was whether Pakistan batting was able to withstand the pressure of scoreboard and once again Babar Azam's men batted in an archaic manner, as if the 50-over showpiece was being held in 1992 and not in 2023.

Once again Babar (38 off 45 balls) and Mohammed Rizwan (36 off 51 balls), the two pillars of Pakistani batting, struggled to get going and let the game drift during their 51-run stand in 11.2 overs.

Batting second at Eden Gardens has been tricky as the ball swung around and also with a lot of balls gripping off the surface, there was turn on offer. The two seniors didn't have the game to put the opposition under pressure and that has been Pakistan's story throughout the tournament.

In every 10-over blocks, Pakistan scored 43 (1-10), 46 (11-20) and 54 (21-30), which was never going