England’s Cricket World Cup campaign got back on track with a comprehensive 137-run victory over Bangladesh in Dharamshala.
Led by Dawid Malan’s sublime century, England posted a mammoth total of 364-9 after being asked to bat first.
Malan’s sixth ODI ton, and fourth of 2023, was a masterclass in strokeplay and timing, as he blazed his way to a career-best 140 from 107 balls, including 13 fours and five sixes.
He was ably supported by Jonny Bairstow, who scored 52 on his 100th ODI appearance, and Joe Root, who contributed a breezy 82 and became his country’s leading run-scorer in 50-over World Cups, surpassing Graham Gooch.
England looked set to breach the 400-run mark when they were cruising at 296-2 in the 40th over, but Bangladesh clawed their way back into the game, restricting the scoring rate in the final 10 overs.
Reece Topley drafted into the side in place of spinner Moeen Ali, then tore through Bangladesh’s top order, claiming four wickets for 43 runs.
Topley’s incisive spell reduced Bangladesh to 49-4, and they never recovered from the early setbacks.
Litton Das and Mushfiqur Rahim scored half-centuries, but it was not enough to prevent Bangladesh from crashing to a defeat.
England’s victory was comprehensive and helped them improve their net run rate after the mauling they received from New Zealand in their opening game.
They will take on Afghanistan in Delhi on Sunday, where they may have the services of Ben Stokes, who was rested for the Bangladesh game due to a hip niggle.
For Bangladesh, it was a disappointing result after their win over Afghanistan in the opener.
They will now face table-toppers New Zealand in Chennai on Friday, knowing that they need to put up a much better performance to challenge the Kiwis.
