ENG 133/9; PAK 34/0 match abandoned
England were spared what could have been an embarrassing defeat by Pakistan when the heavens opened again in Colombo.
Against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, England had managed to dig themselves out of trouble but struggled to gain a foothold.
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England, who were without the injured bowlers Sophie Ecclestone and Lauren Bell, slumped to 79 for seven after 25 overs when the covers were first brought on, but the one point for the washout ensures they will return to the top of the table on net run-rate.
After the break, England pushed on to make 133 for nine from a revised 31 overs which was then reduced to 113 by the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern formula.
When the match was called off as the rain fell for a second time, Pakistan were 34 without loss in the run chase.
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Pakistan have not won a match in the 2025 Women’s Cricket World Cup so far, but had shown their capabilities when they caused problems for Australia’s top order. On that occasion, Beth Mooney rescued her side from 76 for seven to a total of 221 for nine with a stunning century.
In a similar position for England, there were no recognised batters left when the weather curtailed play.
There were doubts before the World Cup about England’s resilience under pressure. Their fragility proved their undoing in the T20 World Cup in 2024, and in every game of the Ashes series last winter.
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England’s batters, aside from Knight and Sciver-Brunt, had the ideal opportunity to make an impact. Those two have carried the side for so long, and yet once they were out the middle-order offered hardly any resistance.
With matches against India and Australia to come, it is a worrying sign.
Here, Telegraph Sport assesses whether each England batter was guilty or not guilty of giving her wicket away. Let us know if you agree with our verdicts with a thumbs up for not guilty 👍or thumbs down for guilty 👎 – and scroll to the bottom of the page to have your say in the comments.
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Tammy Beaumont (4): FOW 13/1
Tammy Beaumont misreads the delivery and is castled for four – Getty Images/Sameera Peiris
Beaumont had scored a boundary when she misjudged an inswinger and left it. The ball from Fatima Sana swung in and clipped the top of the bails.
Telegraph Sport verdict: Guilty
Amy Jones (8): FOW 22/2
Having seen how far the ball tailed in to dismiss her opening partner, Jones had less of an excuse when she was bowled for eight through a combination of poor footwork and judgment.
Telegraph Sport verdict: Guilty
Nat Sciver-Brunt (4): FOW 38/3
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A ball that jagged back off the seam, almost like an off-cutter, but she took a step across to try to cut it and dragged it on to the stumps off the bottom edge of an angled bat. It was the wrong choice of shot.
Telegraph Sport verdict: Guilty
Heather Knight (18): FOW 39/4
Knight was not trying to score runs but having survived two reviews already she missed a forward defensive and the ball, which was bound for the top of leg stump thudded into the front pad.
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Telegraph Sport verdict: Not guilty
Emma Lamb (4): FOW 54/5
Emma Lamb plays back and is beaten by the arm ball – Getty Images/Sameera Peiris
Lamb had never batted outside the top three in a professional 50-over match before the World Cup, but she did not know whether to go forward or back and was cleaned up by spinner Sadia Iqbal.
Telegraph Sport verdict: Guilty
Sophia Dunkley (11): FOW 57/6
Dunkley planted her front foot outside off stump and tried to paddle the ball down to fine leg but missed it. The umpire thought she may have tickled it and gave her the benefit of the doubt but she hadn’t and Pakistan successfully overturned the on-field decision.
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Telegraph Sport verdict: Guilty
Alice Capsey (16): FOW 78/7
After weathering a few overs without making much of an impact on the scoreboard, and facing 43 deliveries for 16, Capsey went for a slog sweep and like Dunkley missed a straight one. Admittedly she was in a very difficult position as the last batter with a full rebuild needed.
Telegraph Sport verdict: Guilty
Em Arlott (18): FOW 125/8
Pakistan’s Sidra Nawaz runs out England’s Em Arlott – AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena
After the rain-break Arlott, with 18, became the joint second-highest run-scorer which tells its own story. When she came in, England needed to score runs and quickly, so when she was run out trying to do just that with one over to go, it was the first wicket that was neither leg-before or bowled.
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Telegraph Sport verdict: Not guilty
Charlie Dean (33): FOW 126/9
Dean was out for 33 scooping and it needed a good catch from short fine leg to dismiss her. By far the pick of England’s batters, she kept her head and cannot be blamed. She had to try to go big in the last over.
Telegraph Sport verdict: Not guilty
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