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Champions Trophy 2025: Brendon McCullum needs to find a method to England's madness with Joe Root as main antagonist
The batting unit needs to find a method to its madness, and Joe Root's presence in the middle order will be crucial for England to qualify for the semifinals.
The England team must overcome the ghosts of subcontinent conditions with the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025. The Three Lions redefined the 50-over format from 2017 to 2019 and lifted the 2019 ODI World Cup trophy at home. However, the emergence of the T20 format and the side's transition witnessed a downfall in consistency over the years.
Under Jos Buttler's leadership, England entered the 2023 ODI World Cup as the defending champions but faltered miserably on the Indian pitches. They won just three matches out of nine in the league stage and failed to qualify for the semifinals.
After playing an aggressive brand of cricket in Tests under Brendon McCullum, the ECB made the big call and appointed him the coach of the white-ball team, too. However, unlike Tests, there will be much more pressure on McCullum now as the limited-overs format demands results, and in recent times, England has not been able to produce them in their favours much in their favour.
The batting unit needs to find a method to its madness, and Joe Root's presence in the middle order will be crucial for England to qualify for the semifinals.
Recent form
The England team shifted their focus back to 50-over format after the 2023 World Cup and played in four ODI series but failed to win win. They managed to get over the line in just four out of the 14 matches which clearly depicted that despite all the firepower in the squad they have failed to execute their plans.
In the last ODI series against India, they suffered an embarrassing whitewash, were completely outclassed, and failed to put up much of a fight. The players also faced criticism from the likes of Kevin Pietersen and Ravi Shastri for avoiding net sessions and prioritising playing golf. The English batters failed to tackle the Indian spinners throughout the white-ball tour, and they might face the same problems when they play on Pakistan pitches in the Champions Trophy.
However, Adil Rashid's form is a big positive for the England team ahead of the marquee event. The leg-spinner operated at a high level on the Indian pitches and managed to trouble the Indian batters a bit. He finished the ODI series as the top wicket-taker, with seven scalps in three matches at an average of over 27 and an economy rate of 6.36.
England's Champions Trophy group schedule
vs Australia, February 22, Lahore
vs Afghanistan, February 26, Lahore
vs South Africa, March 1, Karachi
England's best XI:
Ben Duckett, Philip Salt (wk), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler (c), Liam Livingstone, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Saqib Mahmood
England's full squad: Jos Buttler (c), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Tom Banton, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Jamie Smith, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Saqib Mahmood, Phil Salt, Mark Wood
