NOTHING to do with the Ashes, eh? Tell that to every single England supporter who watched this demolition job on the Aussies.
England did not just beat Australia in the Twenty20 World Cup here – they absolutely destroyed and humiliated them.
Eoin Morgan’s team were brilliant with the ball and then Jos Buttler, Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow pulverised the Aussie bowlers.
It added up to a victory by eight wickets with 8.2 overs to spare and England joined Pakistan as the only teams with three wins out of three in the Super 12s phase.
Buttler hit successive sixes off Mitchell Starc that both carried onto the top deck of the stand, measured at 94 metres and 95 metres.
He bettered even that with a rocket-launch off leg-spinner Adam Zampa that carried for 102 metres.
It was a wonderful exhibition of ball-striking, a devastating mixture of power, timing and self-belief.
Buttler finished with 71 not out from 32 balls. Don’t forget he will be a key member of England’s Ashes squad, now he has agreed to go. Of course this will give him a surge of confidence for what lies ahead.
Roy earlier registered 92 metres on the slugger scale with a blow over mid-wicket off Cummins.
FREE BETS: GET OVER £2,000 IN NEW CUSTOMER DEALS
Even Bairstow got into the act with a couple of sixes off Zampa. It was astonishing stuff, battering the Aussies as if they were a bunch of clubbies.
For a first confrontation with the old enemy this winter, it could not have gone better. And it will surely have a slight impact on the thoughts of David Warner and Steve Smith, who managed just two runs between them.
And the way Australia’s likely Test bowlers Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Cummins were treated with such disdain will certainly please Joe Root.
After bowling out Windies for just 55 and then thrashing Bangladesh in their first two games, this was the most remarkable performance of all by England.
Morgan won the toss and, bearing in mind virtually every match here has been won by the chasing team, obviously chose to field first.
Within little more than the blink of an eye, Australia’s big gun batters were dispatched to the dressing-room.
Warner, who found some form in Australia’s win over Sri Lanka 48 hours earlier, nibbled at his second ball and was caught behind. Stuart Broad will have taken note.
Warner’s last 17 innings against England in all formats have produced 13 single-figure scores.
Smith mis-cued a pull shot off Chris Jordan and Chris Woakes, back pedalling at mid-on, held a one-handed grab above his head.
Smith is a Test match phenomenon but many are muttering that he shouldn’t be in Australia’s T20 side.
Glenn Maxwell has heavy artillery in his willow but he missed a straight one from Woakes, who has been superb so far in this tournament.
Marcus Stoinis failed to pick Adil Rashid’s wrong ‘un and then wicketkeeper Matthew Wade hoisted Liam Livingstone to long-on.
Livingstone bowled four overs for 15 runs. His bowling is becoming a real bonus. He might be a part-timer but he can bowl off-breaks to left-handers and leggies to right-handers.
Even though they were losing wickets and needed to build some sort of platform, the Aussies displayed a dismal lack of intent and aggression.
Not until Ashton Agar launched back-to-back sixes in Woakes’ final over did they clear the boundary.
Then Cummins struck his first two deliveries for six before being bowled by his third. That was a three-ball 12 for the big Aussie.
Roy and Buttler adopted the best method for chasing a modest total – all-out attack. Roy was lbw attempting a reverse sweep and Dawid Malan caught behind but Buttler and Bairstow kept sending the ball into orbit.
