It has been a tough campaign for England in the ongoing Cricket World Cup 2023 and things got even worse with a 100-run defeat against India on Sunday. The defending champions produced a good bowling show to restrict India to 229 but their batters were once again the weak link as they were all out for 129. This was England's fifth loss in six games and they are currently at the bottom of the points table with just 2 points. Legendary India cricketer Ravi Shastri blasted the Jos Buttler-side for their show in the competition till now and even emphasised on the huge gulf in quality between England and India.
"England should be devastated – spectators, supporters. Because the first match which they lost, 17 overs were left in the game when New Zealand beat them. Against South Africa, they got all out in 20 overs. That game ended early. Then they were all out in 30 overs against Sri Lanka, where SL chased the target and finished the match in 25 overs. Today, they had lost 8 wickets inside 32 overs. You call yourselves World Champions? It means, if they aren't sad over their performance, who will?" Shastri said.
"If someone asks what is the difference between India and England, it is of 8 teams," he added.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced that the top 7 teams in the Cricket World Cup will qualify directly for the Champions Trophy 2025 along with the hosts Pakistan. With England in the bottom spot, they are at risk of missing the competition.
"From here on, England will have to play for pride. The reason I am saying that is because right now they are at the bottom of the points table. And in the Champions Trophy which takes place in 2025, only the top 8 teams of the World Cup can qualify. So if England remain in the bottom two, imagine a team like them not playing an ICC tournament as big as the CT would be a huge blow," Shastri concluded.