🔗 Share this article Heavy Downpours Saves England and Spoils Pakistan Aspirations of Memorable Victory Pakistan narrowly missed out on their first ODI success versus the English side at the Colombo venue midweek, reaching an unbeaten 34 chasing a DLS-adjusted target of 113 before heavy rainfall cut short their aspirations of making history. England's Batting Struggles England's offensive play has stumbled from crisis to crisis during this World Cup – they needed rescuing thanks to Heather Knight versus Bangladesh and by Nat Sciver-Brunt versus Sri Lanka – and here it seemed as if their vulnerabilities would come back to trouble them, as they collapsed to 79 for seven in the opening 25 overs. Weather Interruptions and Comeback Postponed first by rain for about four hours, England returned to score another 54 runs – yet the Pakistani openers the duo of Ali and Sohail seemed to be handling easily of the chase, aided by the non-participation of England’s key strike bowlers Lauren Bell and Sophie Ecclestone because of illness. Only additional rainfall spared England embarrassment. "Pakistan delivered exceptional bowling and created significant difficulties for us to get into the game at all,” England's leader the captain commented during the broadcast. "Our performance was insufficient and we accept responsibility. Everyone’s practising really well and I guess it’s about figuring out how to perform similarly during games.” Tournament Implications The washed-out game signifies that England remain on course to progress to the semi-finals if they manage to win one of their final three group matches against India, Australia and New Zealand. Ground State and Bowling Performance This championship has thus far been ideal for spin bowlers, however in this match it was significant swing which caused problems against the English opening lineup, post substantial precipitation the previous day that canceled the second half of Sri Lanka’s match versus New Zealand. Pakistan's emerging leader Captain Sana delivered a remarkable spell with figures of 5-1-19-3, featuring a maiden over with a wicket first up, dismissing Amy Jones through the gate via an inward-moving ball. Crucial Instances and Review System The English batter again rescued herself using a prompt Decision Review System appeal versus Sana which was missing leg stump, only for the Pakistan captain to take two wickets during the subsequent over with two more swinging balls – one which the captain deflected onto to her stumps, and another that struck Knight plumb in front. Before this, The English opener had shouldered arms facing Diana Baig and got bowled by a nip-backer which hit the top of her wicket, whereas it was the left-arm bowling from Sadia Iqbal that accounted for Dunkley and Lamb. Competition Organization Concerns Doubts might emerge regarding the choice to organize a portion of the tournament in the Colombo venue throughout the rainy season, given that this is the third canceled match at the ground – but England will simply breathe a sigh of relief as they move on toward their next match in Indore.