THAT’S MY ROY!
Opener leads the charge as England bury memory of Scotland humiliation
IT IS only a week since England lost to Scotland, but already that result feels like a freak from another lifetime.
On the day Australia’s footballers lost to France at the World Cup in Russia, and their rugby players went down at home to Ireland, their cricketers completed an unwanted hattrick in Wales. A superb century from Shaun Marsh turned a potential t hrashing i nto something more respectable: Australia’s eventual margin of defeat was 38 runs. With England l eading the five- match series 2-0, a victory in Tuesday’s third one-day international at Trent Bridge will lead to talk of a whitewash.
This is a second-string Australian side, shorn of their A-listers through a combination of suspension and injury, rest and recuperation. But if there’s one thing English sport never tires of, it’s beating the Aussies.
Perhaps the most gratifying aspect of a win overseen by Jos Buttler after Eoin Morgan pulled out with a back spasm was a restorative hundred for Jason Roy. Since making 180 at Sydney in January, he had gone 10 oneday innings without reaching 50. Here he made a sparkling 120 from just 108 balls to underpin England’s 342 for eight, their highest score against Australia.
When Ben Stokes returns from his hamstring injury — and he could yet appear towards the end of this series — a batsman will have to make way. If there was any doubt before, there is none now: it will not be Roy. One six over long on off Marcus Stoinis was dismissive.
There were also more thrills from Buttler, whose explosive hitting is becoming a feature of the summer. After launching Pakistan’s Faheem Ashraf i nto Headingley’s rugby ground during the recent second Test, he ramped successive balls from Jhye Richardson over his left shoulder for six towards the River Taff.
Buttler is a creature of his time — innovative, adaptable and with an eye for entertainment. His unbeaten 91 came from only 70 deliveries and provided England with a late flurry. They are lucky to have him.
If Roy and Buttler hogged the lime- light, hitting 20 of their side’s 36 fours and four of their five sixes, the innings as a whole turned out to be a team effort of unprecedented proportions.
Never before in 4,009 one-day internationals had the first five wickets all added at least 50, as England’s did here — no mean feat considering ing they were interrupted several times mes by showers.
For a while it looked as if the plauudits would once more go to Jonny y Bairstow. After three hundreds in four innings, he raced to 42 before edging a cut off Kane Richardson that spoke, if anything, of over-confidence. At the moment, it is probably his only y enemy.
Alex Hales and Joe Root both oth made attractive twenties, but Sam Billings did his prospects of making king next year’s World Cup little good with ith a scratchy 18-ball 11. His last eight innings in all cricket have produced 38 runs. The talent is there, but the rhythm has vanished.
Thanks to Marsh, Australia were never quite out of it as they set about what would have been the highest successful run-chase in their history. A Glamorgan player until the end of May, he showed off his knowledge of Cardiff’s quirky angles — the straight boundaries are short, the square ones long — and he made England sweat.
The trouble was, wickets kept falling too regularly for Australian comfort. Travis Head shovelled Mark Wood to midwicket, where Hales made good ground to take a smart one-handed catch, and D’Arcy Short edged Moeen Ali to Root at slip.
Liam Plunkett bowled Stoinis off an inside edge for nine, the dangerous Aaron Finch was lbw to Adil Rashid for a duck as he missed a paddle sweep, and when Glenn Maxwell heaved Moeen to long on, Australia were 164 for five.
A mauling beckoned but Marsh found a willing ally in Ashton Agar, who once made 98 in an Ashes Test from No11. With the sun finally out and t he misfields creeping i n, Australia set about turning a lost cause into an outside chance. When Agar missed Rashid’s googly to end a stand of 96, England looked relieved.
Out came captain Tim Paine, minus a tooth after taking a blow in the face while keeping wicket, and with Australia needing 11 an over. But he hooked Plunkett to fine leg, and two balls later Plunkett, who finished with four scalps, bowled Marsh for 131 with a clever off-cutter.
That was more o r less t hat . England, though, knew they had been in a fight.