Stokes and spinners give England a thumping win

Thursday, 9 November 2023 00:45 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Ben Stokes scored his maiden century in World Cups and spinners Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid bowled England to a thumping 160-run win over Netherlands in a league match played at the Maharashtra CA Stadium on Wednesday.

The win boosted England’s chances of qualifying for a place in the 2025 Champions trophy as they lifted themselves from the bottom of the table to seventh position.

Netherlands will look back at this game as a missed opportunity after having England at 192/6, but as he does so often, Ben Stokes came to the rescue to score his first World Cup hundred – 108 off 84 balls (6 fours, 6 sixes), putting on a partnership of 129 for the seventh wicket along with Chris Woakes who made a quickfire 50 off 45 balls (5 fours, 1 six). As many as 124 runs were scored in the last 10 overs as the match turned on its head with England posting their best ever score in the ongoing World Cup – 339-9.

A rollicking 74-ball 87 (10 fours, 2 sixes) from Dawid Malan put England on route for a big score but as has been the norm with them in the tournament, they nosedived from 133/1 to 192/6 before Stokes and Woakes combined to turn the tables.

Having played his part with the bat, Woakes returned to bowl a superb new-ball spell and with David Willey got the ball to talk. They pushed Netherlands on the back foot straightaway. Along with a couple of wickets upfront, the duo created so much run-rate pressure that by the time spin came on, Netherlands were well behind the asking run rate. They had a lot of catching up to do and eventually succumbed for 179 in the 38th over with spinners Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid sharing the spoils with three wickets apiece.

Scores: England 339-9 (50) (Dawid Malan 87, Joe Root 28, Ben Stokes 108, Chris Woakes 51, Aryan Dutt 2/67, Logan van Beek 2/88, Bas de Leede 3/74)

Netherlands 179 (37.2) (Wesley Barresi 37, Sybrand Engelbrecht 33, Scott Edwards 38, Teja Nidamanuru 41, David Willey 2/19, Moeen Ali 3/42, Adil Rasheed 3/54)