England had a forgettable start to their ODI World Cup 2023 campaign as the defending champions faced a shocking nine-wicket defeat against New Zealand in the opening match. The Jos Buttler-led side posted a total of 282/9 in 50 overs but the Kiwis chased down the target in just 36.2 overs. England, who now eye redemption, will take on Bangladesh in their next World Cup match on Tuesday. Ahead of the match, England skipper Buttler expressed his concerns over Dharamsala’s outfield.
The Tuesday’s match will be hosted at Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh, whose outfield was rated ‘average’ by the International Cricket Council (ICC), after the match between Afghanistan and Bangladesh on Saturday.
“Yeah, a few I think, it’s poor in my own opinion. I think any time you’re sort of talking about being careful diving or sort of being careful when you’re fielding, it sort of goes against everything you want to be as a team,” Buttler said during the pre-match press conference.
“You know you want to dive through our houses to save a run. So that’s obviously not ideal, the way the surface is, the outfield. But we won’t use it as an excuse, we’ll adapt to it. But yeah, certainly if you feel like you have to hold yourself back, it’s not a place you want to be as a team or player, or in a World Cup match,” he added.
Apart from Buttler, Afghanistan coach Jonathan Trott had expressed his displeasure over the outfield at the Dharamsala Stadium following the six-wicket loss to Bangladesh in their opening match, saying it was sheer fortune that some of the players did not pick up niggles while fielding.
The loss against New Zealand was an early wake-up call for Buttler, whose team members know the Indian pitches and the conditions here like the back of their hand with many of them playing in the Indian Premier League.
While England will certainly be the favourites, Bangladesh know how to turn the tide, and the defending champions know all too well that they can ill-afford a second successive loss.
(With PTI Inputs)
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