England hope CT provides elusive title

LONDON: In 42 years of trying England have never won a major global one-day international trophy but hopes are high they can finally put an end to that damning statistic as the host nation of next month’s Champions Trophy.

Eoin Morgan’s men have come a long way in a short space of time since a humiliating first-round exit at the 2015 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand saw them labelled “an analogue team in a digital age”.

Proof of their resurgence came when they posted a world record ODI score of 444 for three against Pakistan at Trent Bridge last year.

England, who once disdained the Indian Premier League, are now happy to let players miss internationals so they can extend their time in the lucrative Twenty20 event.

In all-rounder Ben Stokes they have one of the world’s best, with the Durham hero paid a record 2.16 million to take part before being named the tournament’s most valuable player on the field as well.

And even when Stokes fails to fire, England can still find a way to win games -- as they showed with a 72-run victory over top-ranked South Africa in the first ODI of a threematch warm-up series at Headingley on Wednesday.

“We’ve got the team that is capable of (winning our next seven matches),” said allrounder Mooen Ali.

Their displays have been noted, with Kane Williamson, the captain of an enduringly competitive New Zealand, saying: “They are the best England one-day unit I’ve played against.

The power in their batting line-up is a real strength, but it’s one-day cricket and things happen that aren’t expected.”

England, whose only major International Cricket Council trophy is the 2010 World Twenty20, are well aware of that point.

As if losing three World Cup finals, the last in 1992, was not bad enough, England have also been beaten in two title-deciding matches in the Champions Trophy, the ‘mini World Cup’, on home soil when well-placed.

In 2004, they reduced the West Indies to 147 for eight chasing 218 only to suffer a two-wicket defeat.

Yet what happened at Edgbaston four years ago, in the last Champions Trophy final, was arguably even worse.

England, with many of the current squad involved, eventually needed 20 off 16 balls with six wickets in hand — an unlosable position from which they duly lost to India, who will be a tough proposition again under the leadership of Virat Kohli.

With scores of 300 barely a ‘par score’, bowlers could yet play a decisive role. SOUTHAMPTON: South Africa captain AB de Villiers insisted his side had done nothing wrong after they found themselves caught up in a fresh ball-tampering row as they lost their one-day international series against England.

The hosts somehow managed to win by two runs at Southampton to go 2-0 up when it seemed South Africa were on the brink of levelling matters ahead of Monday’s third and final ODI at Lord’s.

As if that was not bad enough for the tourists, de Villiers thought he might be accused of ball-tampering during England’s innings.

After the 33rd over, it appeared he was trying to get the ball changed.

But de Villiers later revealed he was in fact insisting to umpires Chris Gaffaney and Rob Bailey that the Proteas were not responsible for illegally altering its condition.

The vexed issue of balltampering is particularly emotive for South Africa given that Test skipper Faf du Plessis was fined his match fee by the International Cricket Council in November for shining the ball using saliva generated by sucking on a mint during the Proteas’s second Test win over Australia in Hobart.

On Saturday, de Villiers felt his side risked being accused once again, although he added the fact the umpires did not in the end change the ball was proof of the Proteas’ innocence.

Asked at a post-match news conference if he felt he was being held responsible, de Villiers replied: “Yes, I did.” He added: “The umpires felt the condition of the ball changed, in a way making me feel we were responsible as a team. “I was quite upset about that ... (but) it’s done and dusted now. Nothing happened, there were no fines given or anything like that.” Reflecting on his conversation with the officials, de Villiers said: “I expressed I was quite upset about it. “I told the umpires we had nothing to do with the condition of the ball ... no further steps were taken ... and we move on.

“Generally there is a warning or a fine, but none of that happened. That tells me they realised we were innocent in this case. “I honestly think it was just a bad ball today ... which happens sometimes, the leather comes off sometimes.

“Unfortunately, the umpires didn’t agree with that.”