Cricket World Cup 2019: UK press’ England savagery deepens

The fallout from England’s stumbling World Cup campaign continues as the British tabloids savage their disappointing national team.

The fallout from England’s stumbling World Cup campaign continues to deepen as the British tabloids savage their national team after its latest disappointment.

England has lost three of its seven matches at the tournament it was supposed to win, leaving the side sitting precariously inside the finals spots by one point.

And Eoin Morgan's men haven’t been handed the benefit of the doubt by the British press who have witnessed too many English failures at the tournament before.

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The Times ran with a back page headline “England on the brink”, The Mirror picked “Driven Starc raving mad” while Daily Telegraph chose a picture of Ben Stokes kicking his bat with the words “Taking a kicking”.

Meanwhile, Daily Mail published a story that reported England was heading towards “another World Cup shambles” that would take place in a “crowded pantheon of debacles”.

“Whisper it, but the stage is set for England’s biggest World Cup letdown of the lot,” wrote cricket writer and Wisden editor Lawrence Booth.

The Times ran with a back page headline “England on the brink”

“If you thought 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011 and 2015 weren’t great, try stumbling in front of your home crowd because the favourites tag around your neck is starting to resemble a millstone.”

Cricket correspondent for Daily Mirror Dean Wilson was similarly doom and gloom, suggesting England needed a “dose of reality and energy” if it was to avoid a humiliating World Cup exit.

He was particularly bemused by Morgan’s assertion that Tuesday’s 64-run loss to Australia wasn’t disappointing, writing: “Newsflash! It was far worse than disappointing.

Back Page of the Mirror

“They are fundamentally ­failing to cope with the pressure of the situation they find ­themselves in — playing tournament cricket where there is something riding on each game, being well-fancied with huge levels of expectation and being the hosts.

“They are failing to cope with the conditions, unable to adapt their game plans sufficiently for the surfaces, or adjust the make up of their team to cope with less batsman-friendly pitches.”

But it’s not just journalists offering their rebukes for the national team and its captain.

Back Page of The Times

Former England captain Nasser Hussain also disagreed with Morgan, but for the defence of his bowlers at Lord’s - he crankily insisted they weren’t too short early in the Australia innings.

“It is not often I disagree with Eoin Morgan but he said after this defeat by Australia on Tuesday that England bowled well without luck at Lord’s. I don’t think they did,” Hussain wrote for Daily Mail.

“Perhaps Morgan is just trying to back his bowlers up rather than chastise them because England are not out of the World Cup yet but this leaves them very vulnerable.”