Despite some missed opportunities to convert their starts, the Australian batsmen managed to post a total of 286 against their arch-rivals, with Marnus Labuschagne contributing his highest score of the tournament, 71 off 83 balls.
AS IT HAPPENED: ENGLAND vs AUSTRALIA
England, whose potent batting lineup had struggled throughout their title defense, had a chance to break their losing streak with four consecutive defeats.
In the midst of heavy dew, Ben Stokes (64 off 90) fought valiantly while partnering with Dawid Malan (50 off 64) and Moeen Ali (42 off 43) to keep the chase alive. However, it was Zampa who delivered the decisive blows, limiting England to 253 runs in 48.1 overs.
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Chris Woakes (32 off 33) made an effort towards the end but fell short.
Zampa’s first breakthrough was England skipper Jos Buttler (1), who was out in the deep, followed by the dismissal of Stokes in a soft manner. A short ball on the leg side led to Stokes offering a simple catch to Stoinis at short-fine leg.
England’s fate was sealed when Moeen Ali’s slog sweep off Zampa found its way into the hands of David Warner at deep mid-wicket.
While England’s batters, including Stokes, Moeen, and Dawid Malan, displayed their renowned strokeplay, they couldn’t stay at the crease long enough to see their team through.
Left-arm pacer Mitchell Starc generated swing in the powerplay, getting an early breakthrough as Jonny Bairstow edged one down the leg side.
Joe Root was set up by Starc with a series of inswingers, and he eventually edged one outside the off-stump.
Australia’s sharp fielding also played a role in their fifth consecutive victory.
In their innings, Labuschagne, Steve Smith (44 off 52), Cameron Green (47 off 52), and Marcus Stoinis (35 off 32) all failed to capitalize on their starts.
Leg-spinner Adil Rashid (2/38) maintained his economy, while pacer Mark Wood (2/70) used the short ball effectively to pressure the opposition, especially Green.
Chris Woakes (4/54) made an impact with the new ball for the second consecutive game, removing the dangerous opening duo of David Warner (15) and Travis Head (11). He also struck twice in the death overs.
England managed to take early wickets after putting Australia in to bat. Head handed a routine catch to Joe Root at first slip off an away-moving delivery from Woakes. Three overs later, Warner mistimed a pull shot, giving Woakes his second wicket, leaving Australia at 38 for two in the sixth over.
Smith and Labuschagne then combined for a 75-run partnership off 96 balls, but they found boundaries hard to come by.
After Smith’s dismissal, Josh Inglis (3) attempted to accelerate the scoring but fell while attempting a reverse sweep off Rashid.
Green, who struggled against short-pitched deliveries from Wood, did manage to find the boundary with some well-timed shots. However, he lost his stumps while missing a slog sweep against left-arm pacer David Willey.
Stoinis added to the excitement by hitting Rashid and Liam Livingstone for sixes over deep mid-wicket but was caught in the same region off a short ball from Livingstone.
It appeared that Australia might not utilize their full allotment of overs, but Adam Zampa’s timely cameo of 29 from 19 balls pushed the team close to the 300-run mark.
