England out to weather storm after familiar ODI implosion

At the time and taken in isolation England's opening one-day international against New Zealand on Sunday seemed wild, chaotic, bizarre.

- Simon Burnton

As they batted at the start of the game wickets fell to the first ball, the ninth, 12th, and - except for the period when the brilliant Harry Brook was joined at the crease by Jamie Overton - fairly regularly thereafter. Beyond that pair, the rest of the team scored 25.

But to anyone who witnessed the start of their last series in the format, against South Africa at Headingley last month - when they lost the toss, were put in to bat and rolled for 131 - it was a very familiar kind of freakishness. Indeed in 12 bilateral ODI series since their 2022 T20 World Cup win they have won the first game twice and lost it nine times (one was abandoned) - and in all but one of those defeats they batted first and posted a score that was easily chased down, losing by six wickets, eight wickets, four, seven, eight, four, seven and most recently four. In that time they have also played two global tournaments in the format, and lost their first games in both.

Last month Brendon McCullum, the head coach, produced a curious defence of England's planned preparation for the Ashes. “I think over the last three years since I've been here we've won every first Test of every Test series away, following the exact preparation we're going to follow,” he said. “It doesn’t guarantee us anything, but it’s the familiarity with that preparation which gives us a chance.”

If that is his logic, he must now be analysing the way the team prepares for ODI series and working out how to change everything about it.