The ICC One-Day International World Cup has witnessed many of upsets throughout the years, and the most recent one in Match 13 between England and Afghanistan couldn’t be missed.
Expecting an upset is the most effective way for any athletic event to gain attention. England is one such powerful squad in the quadrennial competition that has had its share of World Cup failures.
Let’s take a look at the three occasions the Three Lions were humiliated by lower-ranked teams in the renowned ICC event.
1. Afghanistan, 2023 World Cup, October 15, Delhi
Afghanistan wrote history on October 15, 2023, when they defeated defending World Cup winners England by 69 runs in Delhi. The spinners from Afghanistan were effective in keeping the star-studded England batting order at bay.
England needed a strong start from its top order to chase down an under-par total of 285 on a ground that provided modest advantages for spinners. In the powerplay, Afghanistan sent the dangerous Jonny Bairstow and the composed Joe Root back to the pavilion. Jos Buttler’s men were soon reeling at 138 for 6 at one point.
Though Harry Brook was tasked with reviving the pursuit in the middle, he was powerless against the powerful turn of Mujee ur Rahman and Rashid Khan, who shared six wickets between them. Senior all-rounder Mohammad Nabi returned with two wickets, while Fazalhaq Farooqi and Naveen-ul-Haq both grabbed one as England’s innings was dismissed for 215.
Earlier in the game, Afghanistan openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz (80) and Ibrahim Zadran (28), with the former being the wrecker-in-chief, produced a blazing start to the innings. In the middle, wicketkeeper Ikram Alikhil hit a crucial half-century.
2. Bangladesh, 2015 World Cup, March 9, Adelaide
It was a crucial situation that would determine England’s fate in qualifying for the semi-finals of the 2015 World Cup. Meanwhile, a win for Bangladesh was enough to secure their spot in the elimination round. Eoin Morgan won the toss and opted for Bangladesh to bat first at the Adelaide Oval.
The Tigers amassed a modest 275 for 7 in the first innings, riding on Mahmudullah’s magnificent ton 103 off 138 balls and Mushfiqur Rahim’s knock of 89. The total was enough to eliminate England from the competition when they were bowled out for 260 in 48.3 overs.
Rubel Hossain bowled a magnificent spell of 4 for 53, while Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and Taskin Ahmed each took two wickets to dismantle the English batting order. This is regarded as one of the greatest upsets in cricket history.
3. Ireland, 2011 World Cup, March 2, Bengaluru
In the first round of the 2011 World Cup, the two adjacent countries were assigned to Group B. England put set a daunting score of 327 for 8 in the first innings, with to sublime fifties from Jonathan Trott (92) and Ian Bell (81) and opener Kevin Pietersen’s 50-ball 59.
With the strong speed troika of James Anderson, Stuart Broad, and Tim Bresnan seemingly impenetrable for the Irish men, England would have vouched for a resounding win. Nonetheless, Kevin O’Brien was anticipating a nail-biter when his team was reduced to 111 for 5 at the midway point.
The Ireland middle-order hitter hit his century in just 50 balls, the fastest by an individual batter at the quadrennial tournament at the time. He hit 13 fours and six sixes in his innings of 113 off 63 balls before being run out in the last over.
O’Brien’s punishment had little effect on England, as Ireland crossed the finish line with five balls to spare to record the greatest successful chase in World Cup history at the time.
