ENG VS AUS - 10th Match, Group A, ICC Champions Trophy, 2017

The Barmy Army were already in overdrive mode. It for sure could only be a shadow of the scenes waiting to unfold on the streets of Dhaka. ** Drum roll ** Welcome the newest entrants into the semis - Bangladesh. Not quite the Kenya-2003 moment but always nice. Two knockouts over the next two days before the official ones. I am Vineet Anantharaman waving a goodbye in the company of Abhinand Raghavendran, Akshay Maanay, Ramakrishnan and Venky. Ta ta!!

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STATS WRAP UP thanks to Deepu Narayanan:

- Ben Stokes became the fourth England player to achieve the double of 1000 runs & 50 wickets in ODIs after Ian Botham, Andrew Flintoff & Paul Collingwood.

- 4/33 by Mark Wood is the best figures by an England bowler in CT eclipsing Ronnie Irani's 4/37 in 2002. Adil Rashid's 4/41 is best by an England spinner in CT.

- Eoin Morgan now has 14 50+ scores in ODIs against Australia is the most by an England player going past Graham Gooch's 13. It was 39th fifty-plus score for Morgan for England - joint most for England in ODIs along with Ian Bell.

- 159-run stand b/w Morgan & Stokes is the second highest fourth wicket stand in CT history and the highest for England against Australia for the fourth wicket.

- After remaining unbeaten for nine successive CT matches, which included two wins in the finals, Australia has now remained winless for six consecutive CT games.

- England vs Australia in CT:
In Eng: Eng have won all three (2004, 2013 & 2017)
Outside Eng: Aus have won both (2006 & 2009)

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Smith: It is disappointing. We did not play our best game. We did well to start off with the bat but we lost I think five wickets for 15 runs. When you play against England we cannot afford that. We have played a lot of cricket and need to come out and play at the big stage. Today we did not do that and there were a few soft dismissals. After the rain break we weren't up to our best with the bowling. Morgan and Stokesy played well and we gave them a few freebies too. I think the balance was okay. The guys just did not step up and get those big scores. A few games did not go our way with the rain, we were on and off and lost a bit of momentum. You have got to take the onus as a top four and unfortunately nobody did that.

Morgan: Things have gone pretty well, we've been lucky. We've found form and the guys performing makes us happy. Yeah, the bowling has done a good job. We took Australia from a commanding position to one where we thought was an easy chase or a below par chase. To get them down from there was outstanding. Adil Rashid bowled in the last ten overs, something he hasn't done lately. He is growing in confidence and it is glad to see. It is hard work getting high quality batsmen out; Mark (Wood) seems to have found some form. Either side we face are going to be tough as was proved yesterday with Bangladesh turning New Zealand over. We need to play high quality cricket that is required. Hopefully we'd be able to produce something near the standards. (On the mood after early wickets) We just talked about wrestling back the momentum and building a partnership. It was a good wicket and they bowled well in getting us three down.

Ben Stokes, Man of the Match: It is going along nicely. It is a case of where I look back and feel that the training is a lot more consistent. Also I have a bit more confidence going into bat. Buttler and Morgan are a good influence. We just spoke about what the conditions were and we just wanted to take it by the ball. Hopefully I can keep it going forward. We just wanted to get on with the game, especially when we are batting well together. When you have a guy striking as well as Morgan is you can take your time to get set and get the pace of the pitch. Hopefully all players could take confidence out of it. (On the IPL experience) You get yourself exposed to big game moments in front of 30000 people which is similar to what we get out here. Physically I am good, the body feels in good nick, haven't had many problems with the knee. Touchwood.

It would remain a fascinating story for fiction writers who could work out what would have happened had it not been for the sixth-over rains. Nevertheless, it was a victory set up in the first innings. When we witnessed a stunning collapse - losing five wickets for a mere 15 runs, after the platform was set for explosion. The game was always going to be quick and short. Thanks to the rain, we've managed to stretch that too. The spirits of some long post match speeches doesn't seem to have been dampened though. We'll be back with them..

It is official. Called off. England win by 40 runs on the DLS. Group A is closed. Stamped and sealed. A group that doesn't believe in letting Antipodeans go up the ladder. The Aussies deported a day after their neighbours. Alas, it ends in rather glum circumstances. With yet another bout of rain determining the Australian progress. But a day that would be remembered for some of the cleanest hitting you'd ever encounter. Once again, shows the new dawn that English one-day cricket has seen. Even after losing three for not much, Stokes and Morgan did not just see it through, they smashed it through. With a stand that shattered not just records but morals as well, England now make it to Cardiff, becoming the only team to go through without a loss against their name.

18:30 Local Time: Very gloomy pictures coming in from Edgbaston. If the recent weather over the last week has taught us anything, it is that scenes like these do not clear out soon. Nor does the forecast. 19.14 local time is the cut-off time. Am afraid the end looks closer. The umpires are out there in a long discussion..that could be a sign. The super-sopper too seems to have given up.

Harsha Bhogle: "In all fairness, Australia would have lost this as they would have vs NZ. But would have beaten Bangladesh and forced a 3 way tie on 2 points. Anyway, things being as they are, Bangladesh will play their first major semi-final and that will be huge."

Not a pretty picture for cricket in Birmingham. Nothing has been pretty over the last couple of hours if you happen to be an Aussie fan though. Here's the latest from Rob, pinging our messenger with some discouraging news. "I'm doubtful there will be any more play here. A lot of rain has fallen and it looks well set in for as far as the eye can see." Alas, that could be the end of the batting mastery. Or a hypothetical fightback.

17:57 local time: With that the heavens open up. They were only waiting for Stokes to get to his century. England were romping home..oh talk about things being anti-climactic. We have another 35 minutes of spare time in the cushion before we begin losing overs..DLS par: 200/4. Australia staring down the barrel, either way. It has gone pretty dark at the ground, but the spectators ain't going anywhere. They've brought their umbrellas with themselves. Get a few for the poor groundsmen as well..

Zampa to Stokes, no run, fired in quick in response. Tucked around to square leg

Zampa to Stokes, FOUR, here's the stroke. Here's the hit. Champions Trophy century #1. Helped by Zampa to an extent, dropping it half way down the track. All the time to rock back, get deep inside and slam it in front of square, in the form of a cut. Off goes the helmet, out stretch the arms and now comes the bear hug..with a badge kiss

The final slog signal. As KD rotates his arms around the circumference

Natty: When was the last time Bangladesh reached the semi-finals of an ICC tournament??? -- Never. This would be the first time.

Hazlewood to Buttler, no run, 132kph, seaming in a touch this time. A hoppy nudge to mid-wicket. All in defence

Hazlewood to Buttler, no run, 135kph, the nagging lines. On the top of off. Nothing nagging in response. A stern behind the line block

Hazlewood to Stokes, 1 run, gallops away. Swings a tad too hard to lose his timing as he carves it through the covers. 98 it is

Hazlewood to Buttler, 1 run, back to making third man run around in cleaning up these steer downs

Hazlewood to Buttler, no run, cramping him up, with the cut zipping in. A hurried tangle results in a nudge out