Cricket World Cup 2019

[Kevin S]

No snark detected, I'm fronting off not a lot myself. Yeah, I suppose there is and that's why I think England will make the final four without much difficulty. But there are times when having the best batting lineup in the world just isn't enough on the day, whether that's down to canny bowling and fielding, the conditions, errors, off-days or even bad luck. I do wonder how many of these monster scores we've posted in the past couple of years are thanks to the stars aligning.

[Kevin S]

Mind you, they're ticking along nicely at the moment.

[Kevin S]

Wow, jinxing England works quickly these days.

[Kevin S]

Costly over for Hasan Ali there.

[Kevin S]

But then another tight one from Hafeez. Even on radio and text this is brilliant.

[Kevin S]

Worm at 20 overs

[longeared]

Tremendously spiky debate on TMS just now about Mankading between Fazeer Mohammed and Graeme Swann. And Stokes out while I'm typing that. Oh dear.

[San Bernardhinault]

I don't really see a way out of this one for England. Which is bad as an England supporter, but probably good for the tournament.

[Etienne]

Really? No way out with Buttler and Root together? And Moeen still to come and a decent tail (though weaker than usual). Obviously I tipped Pakistan to win at half way and they are clear favourites now, but this isn't over yet.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

It's evens on Betfair, but these two need to do a bit more work yet.

[ursus arctos]

Cricinfo's algorithm gives them a 37 percent chance, even though the historical conversion rate is only 15 percent

[Kevin S]

33 over worm

[Kevin S]

Roooooooooot

Did the barmy army really just do You're Not Singing Any More?

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

Root gone - 100 still needed.

[Kevin S]

Huge ask for the tail now. Pakistan should see this out.

[ursus arctos]

There would seem to be money to be made betting against England

[SouthdownRebel]

All over bar the shouting. Well played, Pakistan.

[diggedy derek]

Tremendous game.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

There would seem to be money to be made betting against England

Yes. As in footy, so in cricket

[Ray de Galles]

It might do England some good to have a bit of a shock early on, to be honest. Fantastic match, frustrating that I had tickets for it and couldn't make it!

[Kevin S]

Congratulations Pakistan. A really disciplined, energetic performance by all accounts.

[Satchmo Distel]

It makes the tournament better and, yes, ends any complacency that might have been around the squad. Supports the argument made by some posters above (which I had doubted at the time) that England's odds were too short going in.

[George C.]

Really enjoyed those highlights, the International Circus took a very well deserved defeat.

Good for the competition overall.

Pakistan the most unpredictable team ever.

[Kevin S]

The match today has a do-or-die feel about it quite early in the tournament. Sri Lanka and Afghanistan took heavy beatings from NZ and Australia so they will be targeting today as the match with which to bounce back.

Afghanistan's recent promotion to the top table means these two have only played three times in ODIs in the past. Sri Lanka won the first two, in the 2014 Asia Cup and the 2015 World Cup but Afghanistan were victorious last autumn in the 2018 Asia Cup.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

Today might be the first washout - rain forecast on and off all day in Cardiff. If they do get started, definitely could be one to keep an eye on the D-L calculators.