Eoin Morgan had tipped the raucous Eric Hollies stand here to be one of England’s chief assets before their encounter with Australia. As the captain signalled the charge that would eventually dump their rivals out of the Champions Trophy, the army of assorted bananas, gorillas, Mexicans and Nintendo characters duly responded.
A burst of rain had forced a break in proceedings at 3pm. With Jason Roy, Alex Hales and Joe Root all departed after a breathtaking surge from the Australia attack, England’s 35 for three from six overs had left the mood only slightly less dank than the weather; a chance to send Steve Smith’s men back to the joys of their contract dispute at home was in jeopardy.
But upon returning to the middle, Morgan lit the fuse from which the Hollies – and Edgbaston as a whole – would explode. He cracked Mitchell Starc’s first two deliveries through the covers in fearless fashion and, with it, ramming home the point that his England side are no longer the types to be cowed when faced by a canary-yellow onslaught in one-day international cricket.
Ben Stokes’s violent, unbeaten 102 will doubtless hog much of the limelight, but Morgan’s 87 in their breakneck stand of 159 was pivotal to this win. He was named in the week by Paul Farbrace, the assistant coach, as the standout central figure in England’s one-day revival and, as he flayed Australia’s bowlers, it felt simply the latest slab of evidence.
Morgan came into the side eight years go as an outlier: a 360-degree cavalier in a team made up largely of roundheads. After a spell when he reined it back a touch – and even found his place questioned after a dip in form and the thorny Bangladesh tour saga – he is back at the peak of his powers as a batsman, while his mandate as leader has swelled.
With he and Stokes nailing down the coffin of Australia’s soggy campaign in a flurry of boundaries, before the captain’s eventual run out, it was Aaron Finch who had the unfortunate stationing in front of the Hollies. The opener enjoys playing England, against whom he has made four of his eight international hundreds, but the repeated chants of “Finchy’s going home” may have taken the edge off a touch.
With Finch and Australia dispatched, agonising over Roy’s spot will doubtless fill some of the time between now and Wednesday’s semi-final in Cardiff. Having averaged 6.73 in eight one-day innings this summer it is fair to say England have entered the territory where they lose little but face in making the switch to Jonny Bairstow’s previously glowing bat.
Bairstow has history of thriving when parachuted in, and even Roy’s electric out‑fielding – demonstrated by the pop-up-and-reclaim boundary catch that removed Glenn Maxwell in front of Edgbaston’s most famous stand –would be more than compensated by the Yorkshireman’s equal prowess. The one unknown is how he goes against the new white ball at the top level.
While Roy’s trough has been an unshiftable headache of late, Morgan will be heartened by his bowlers. They turned Australia’s launchpad of 181 for three, at the now double-the-score mark of 32 overs, into 276 for nine from 50, and largely backing up their performance against New Zealand on a pitch offering less.
Smith had described England’s bowling strategy as predictable before the match, claiming it to be half the battle won already. The other, and more important, 50% is dealing with the ball once it leaves the bowler’s hand. Though his gaggle of fast-mediums shipped runs, Mark Wood and Adil Rashid shone brightly.
Wood’s career-best four for 33 from 10 overs – an England record in the Champions Trophy – was reward for a bowler who once doubted he would return after three ankle operations. That the troublesome joint is seemingly holding up and his pace remains are encouraging signs for the knockout stage to come and the small matter of the Ashes tour.
A maiden five-wicket haul is the next box to tick off on the Durham quick’s CV, but with the pelts of Hashim Amla, Kane Williamson, David Warner and Smith hanging on his wall already this summer, the curious folk that have stared solely at the statistics and not recognised the potential of Wood’s attributes are evaporating fast.
Rashid’s four for 41 was startling in its discipline. No boundaries were shipped from his 10 overs and 28 dots wracked up as Australia’s batsmen floundered against his googly. Hollies, the Warwickshire great who inflicted Don Bradman’s final-innings duck with the wrong ’un, would doubtless have nodded in approval.
