In the opening match of the tournament, the 2019 World Cup losing finalist, England and New Zealand were up against each other. The defending champions, England, was rendered incomprehensible. In that crucial final at Lord’s four years ago, there may not have been much separating the two teams, but on Thursday, the gap was enormous. With 82 deliveries left, New Zealand easily overcame England’s 282 for nine, meaning that even a further 100 runs would not have significantly changed the outcome. On their World Cup debuts, Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra both scored exquisite, nearly faultless hundreds, and their 273 runs for the second wicket made sure Sam Curran remained the only English bowler to record a wicket.
England, on the other hand, struggled mightily at the plate. The Englishmen failed to capitalise on their starts despite setting a milestone by being the first ODI side to have all 11 of its batters achieve double-digit figures. Part-time off-spinner Glenn Phillips and Matt Henry both damaged the opposition by getting two crucial wickets each. Matt Henry was accurate with the new ball and sneaky at the death and scooped up three wickets. Despite the tournament’s length, New Zealand didn’t want to leave too much till the finish. By advancing quickly to victory, they greatly improved their Net Run Rate and dealt England a defeat that hurt their morale and NRR.