Going into this year’s Cricket World Cup, England were dreaming of defending the crown they worked so hard to win in front of their own fans in 2019.
Four years on and England are on the brink of winning something yet again, only this time it’s the unenviable wooden spoon.
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A 100-run loss to India overnight condemned the Poms to their fifth defeat of the World Cup and their fourth-straight loss, with their only win coming against ninth-placed Bangladesh.
In last place and with three games to go, England’s World Cup defence is in tatters.
Given the star power within the team’s ranks, former England skipper Nasser Hussain was left scratching his head at how they’ve somehow ended up rooted to the bottom of the ladder.
“I think India at home were always going to be difficult to beat, but they shouldn’t be at the bottom of the that table,” Hussain told Sky Sports.
“How have a side that has Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root and Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler and Mark Wood and Adil Rashid and all the talent in that dressing room ended up in that position?”
“I think it’s just a slow sort of effect that’s just taken over. First game they lose and then they make bad decisions.
“They win a game, but then they make bad decisions for the next game. Then they double down on those bad decisions and make even worse decisions regarding the team.”
Although they may be big names in English cricket, there is no question the players Hussain named are no spring chickens and a glimpse at the ages of this England team prove just as much.
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Just four players in the England squad at the World Cup are under 30: Harry Brook (24), Sam Curran (25), Gus Atkinson (25), Bryson Carse (28) and Reece Topley (29).
In contrast, there are 10 players aged 32 or older.
Additionally, six players from the triumphant 2019 squad returned for this year’s World Cup.
It’s why former England skipper Michael Vaughan believes it’s time for the team to “be honest” and usher in a new era of white-ball cricketers.
“They’re not performing anywhere near the standard that they should,” Vaughan told Cricbuzz.
“It’s now time for, unfortunately, a reset. It has to start in the next game. There’s no point in saying we’ve got three games in the world cup.
“Moeen Ali, he looks shot. Ben Stokes, he looks shot in 50-over cricket.
“England have got to use these next three games for the likes of Harry Brook, Bryson Carse, Gus Atkinson.
“They have to use the next three games for a complete reset.”
Eoin Morgan, who captained the 2019 side to victory, also is aware of just how “flat” the mood would have been in the England changing room after the India defeat.
More than anything, it’s the fact the team has fallen well short of its publicised expectations in what is their last World Cup hurrah.
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“England came here with a level of expectation in the changing room, not just in the public, that they wanted to win this tournament,” Morgan told Sky Sports.
“The next one is in 2027 and where probably eight or nine of these guys will not be here.
“They will be too old or they’ll be doing various different other things, with the majority of them retired.
“In English white-ball cricket there will be a huge sense of a missed opportunity, because the quality in that changing room is hard to come by.”
The reset Vaughan talks about will be a difficult one to enact, especially given the tight-knit bond within the team boasting a number of players who have spent years competing alongside each other.
But the 49-year-old knows the “comfort blanket” must be ruthlessly ripped off.
“It’s not just the fact that they’re losing, they’re not competing,” Vaughan said.
“That’s what saddens me. They are a group of individuals that are mentally tough, they’ve got talent, they’re very cohesive and very collective.
“They’re probably too nice to each other because they’ve played together so long. It’s like a comfort blanket.
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“That comfort blanket now has to be stripped away.”
England have three games remaining in their World Cup journey: Australia, the Netherlands and Pakistan.
Given the Netherlands’ stunning upset of South Africa, it wouldn’t be out of the question to suggest England might not win another game at this World Cup.
It would be a sad ending to what’s been a long journey for this team over the years and winning a World Cup is no small matter.
But, as Vaughan knows, it is time for the sun to set on this team no matter how it performs for the rest of the tournament.
“We’ve had some wonderful England teams,” Vaughan said.
“This is a team now that’s had its time, had its moment. It’s run out of puff.
“It’s at that moment where they’ve given it everything and have got no more energy.”