Where has it all gone wrong for England at the World Cup?
An ageing squad, confused selection and individual errors have all contributed to a dismal title defence.
England have accepted their chances of defending their World Cup crown are over after slumping to a fourth defeat in their first five matches in India.
The abject run of form has seen the 2019 champions slip to ninth in the table and invited an early inquest into exactly what has gone wrong with a side who were once trailblazers in the 50-over game.
Here, PA looks at five reasons for their current plight.
Lack of new blood
Waiting for Superman
England were thrilled when the inspirational Ben Stokes agreed to end his retirement from the format and it looked a trump card when he hit a national record 182 in his first series back against New Zealand. But this tournament has already passed him by. Having ruled himself out of bowling due to knee problems, he then picked up a hip complaint during the warm-up week and missed England’s first three games. Now, just as he is back and getting his eye in, England are effectively gone.
Powerless powerplays
Muddled selection
England used just 13 players in 11 games when they won the trophy four years ago but had already used all 15 of their squad in their first four this time. They started off loaded with all-rounders, got spooked so badly that they dropped four of them by the time South Africa came around and then reverted back to their original game plan against versus Sri Lanka. Their most in-form bowler, Reece Topley, was a surprise omission from the first match before injury later ended his tournament, Brook was ditched last time out in a side exclusively comprising thirtysomethings and Moeen Ali has drifted in and out despite being vice-captain. The act of putting a balanced XI together has proved beyond them.
Unforced errors
