3 Reasons why England lost to Australia
Australia's domination over England in World Cups continued after the hosts' defeat by 64 runs at Lord's. England now have some questions to answer because this is the first time that they have lost two consecutive ODIs after Champions Trophy 2017.
They will now have to figure things out quickly as their two remaining games are against two unbeaten teams -- India and New Zealand. On the other hand, Australia became the first team to confirm a spot for the semi-finals.
But just why did England lose? Here are the main talking points from the match.
Poor top-order batting
In the past couple of years, England's strength has been their top-order batting unit, but it was not the case yesterday. The likes of Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root were not able to perform when it mattered the most, both being caught out by pace and movement, and it hurt them badly. Eoin Morgan too looked uncomfortable against Mitchell Starc's pace, getting out top-edging a short ball to fine-leg. Hence the middle order succumbed to the pressure and England lost the game pretty convincingly.
Sub-par fielding
Considering that England have been nothing short of exceptional in the field over the past few tournaments, yesterday's match was a complete let down for them in that department. They gave away a lot of runs, which was very unusual. Jos Buttler also missed a stumping of Usman Khawaja in the 28th over.
It did not help that Aaron Finch was spot on with his field. In fact, he had moved his fielder at fine-leg a little more finer just before Morgan top-edged to the man. Finch never missed an opportunity to attack and push for wickets with his field positions.
Australia's Left-Arm Pace Battery
Jason Behrendorff and Starc were accurate and fast in their opening spells. Unlike the English bowlers, they pitched the ball up and used the swing to their advantage and the duo's combined figures read 18.4-1-87-9. It was Behrendorff's first five-wicket haul in ODIs.
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