Jagruti Panda
- Nov 12, 2023
- 4 min read

CWC 2023, ENG vs PAK: England batted first to douse Pakistan's wafer-thin SF hopes; Stokes shines

CWC 2023, England vs Pakistan: Ben Stokes' 84, David Willey's 3-56 and Joe Root's 60 are top performances. England beat Pakistan and end their semi-final hopes.

CWC 2023, England vs Pakistan_ Ben Stokes scored 84 against Pakistan; Pak _ Walking Wicket (Images_ ©englandcricket_Twitter) — Ben Stokes scored 84 against Pakistan (Images: ©englandcricket/Twitter)

Brief scores- England 337/9(Ben Stokes 84 , Joe Root 60, Haris Rauf 64-3) beat Pakistan 244(Salman Agha 51, Babar Azam 38, David Willey 56-3) by 93 runs.

Player Of The Match- David Willey 15(5) & 56-3

England won the toss and decided to bat first against Pakistan to completely quash the slimmest of wafer-thin chances of Pakistan, whose qualification chances relied on beating England by a margin of 287 runs or chasing down the target in three and a half overs; the latter being the most unfeasible scenario possible. England thrashed Pakistan by 93 runs in Eden Gardens to end their World Cup campaign positively. England may not have earned a qualification in CWC 2023, but a win against Pakistan will keep their Champion’s trophy hopes alive, provided Netherlands lose against India.

Talking Point - Pakistan's batting faltered when it mattered the most

Pakistan stuttered badly in the batting department in this year’s CWC, and their performance in batting has been underwhelming. Pakistan's team hasn’t been able to score enough runs in batting-friendly conditions, allowing their opponents to chase the targets without losing much sweat. Also, they haven’t been able to chase down the targets posed to them by higher-ranked teams, which include teams like Australia and England today. Babar Azam’s form and the lack of consistency have been the biggest disappointment for Pakistan. His failure to deliver big on crucial matches has taken a heavy toll on Pakistan’s chances of winning important matches. Pakistan’s opening pair dilemma hasn’t allowed them much 50+ stands. Also, middle-order failures added heaps to the already existing problems that they have been going through throughout.

The dismal batting performance against England is apparent with the top order failure as Pakistan lost both their openers, Shafique and Zaman, on a score of 10. The middle order comprising Babar, Rizwan, Shakeel, and Agha started today but couldn’t capitalize on it, which was required to chase down the huge target of 338. Pakistan wants to delve deep into their dismal batting performance in this year's WC.

Now it is time to discuss the top three performances from the England vs Pakistan game

CWC 2023, England vs Netherlands_ Ben Stokes scored his maiden ODI hundred (108) in World Cup _ Walking Wicket (Images_ ©X_Twitter) — Ben Stokes' 84 helped to put a good total (Images ©X/Twitter)

Ben Stokes bids farewell to CWC 2023 with an impactful innings

England would probably like to introspect into this edition of the World Cup, as batting was their biggest letdown. But they can count upon a few positives, including Ben Stokes’ batting performance in the CWC 2023. Stokes made it count in their last match against Pakistan, where he scored an amazing 84 off 76 balls, including 11 fours and 2 sixes.

After losing both the openers on 108, Stokes came to the crease and stitched an important 132-run stand with Joe Root. While Root played the role of anchor in the partnership, it was Stokes who played the role of aggressor to keep the scoreboard ticking, not for any qualification chance in CWC 2023 but to keep the upcoming Champions Trophy hopes alive. Ben Stokes was the only silver lining in England’s campaign in CWC 2023 as he amassed 301 runs in 6 innings at an average of 50.67.

Joe Root played a perfect anchor to take England to a big total

While Joe Root may not have had a memorable outing in the ongoing WC 2023, he played an important knock of 60 off 72 balls to end his World Cup campaign on a high note. He stitched an important 132-run stand with Stokes in which he anchored his innings. While Stokes took the aggressive route, Root relied on basic ground hitting and running between stumps. England’s biggest ordeal was their middle order, and lower middle order collapses, not allowing them to chase the targets or post huge totals, completely undermining their potential of what they could have offered being the defending champions of the WC.

The partnership between Root and Stokes today will instill a lot of positivity and confidence into the English camp. This is precisely what England have missed throughout the tournament. A brisk start at the top and a strong middle-order partnership allow Butler & co. to finish off strongly. This is all good, but it's a bit late for them.

CWC 2023, India vs England_ David Willey took 3-45 against India in Lucknow _ Walking Wicket (Photo_ ©englandcricket_Twitter) — David Willey took 3-56 against Pakistan (Photo: ©englandcricket/Twitter)

David Willey talks with bat and ball to thrash Pakistan by a huge margin

It was a performance worth remembering for David Willey as he played a blinder cameo innings of 15 off 5 balls to cruise England to 336. Also, he bowled an effective spell in the powerplay overs as he cleaned up the openers Zaman and Shafique within the powerplay overs to take Pakistan to backfoot. Also, he claimed the important wicket of Salman Agha, who played a half-century knock. Willey has put a punch with both bat and ball today, and for this, he was sentenced as the Man of the Match in a game against Pakistan.

Statistical highlights from England vs Pakistan, CWC 2023

Most runs conceded by a bowler in a single World Cup edition: Haris Rauf – 533 runs in 2023 (9 inns) Adil Rashid – 526 runs in 2019 (11 inns) Dilshan Madushanka – 525 runs in 2023 (9 inns)
The third wicket stand of 132 runs between Joe Root and Ben Stokes is the second-highest for this wicket for England against Pakistan in ODIs.
The tenth wicket stand of 53 runs between Rauf & Wasim is the second-highest for this wicket for Pakistan in ODI WC.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 Points Table

Points table scenario & what’s next

Both England and Pakistan have been knocked out of ODI WC 2023. England have finished 7th with 3 wins and 6 losses. Pakistan have finished 5th with 4 wins and 5 losses.