England vs Afghanistan LIVE: Cricket World Cup result and reaction as reigning champions suffer shock defeat

Follow all the action from Arun Jaitley Stadium

England’s Joe Root previews their ICC Cricket World Cup clash with Afghanistan

England’s title defence of the Cricket World Cup is in real trouble after losing to Afghanistan by 69 runs in one of the biggest shocks in the tournament’s history. Afghanistan were dismissed for 284 in Delhi, but bowled out England for 215 with 9.3 overs left. Only Harry Brook offered serious resistance with a 61-ball 66.

The Afghans celebrated only their second-ever win at the World Cup, the other coming against Scotland in 2015 in their first appearance.England have now lost two of their opening three group games, having been thrashed by New Zealand in the tournament opener.

Gurbaz gave the underdogs an explosive start after being sent in by Jos Buttler, dominating a rapid opening stand of 114 and piling on 80 in 57 balls.

But they lost three wickets in 14 balls to throw away much of their good work, Adil Rashid taking the first two before Gurbaz was mindlessly run out by his captain Hashmatullah Shahidi.

He had lit up the lively Arun Jaitley Stadium with his fearless strokeplay, but without his impetus England were able to gain a foothold. They bowled their opponents out for 284 off the penultimate ball of the innings, but there were plenty of question marks over the bowling attack - and even more over the subsequent batting performance.

Follow all the latest live reaction from today’s match in the live blog below and check the latest odds here:

England vs Afghanistan LIVE: ODI World Cup updates

• Match starts Sunday, 15 October at 9:30am BST
• England unchanged, one alteration for Afghanistan. England opt to field first
• Gurbaz run out for 80 as three wickets fall in rapid succession after great start
• Joe Root makes four catches as Afghanistan batting order falls
• Afghanistan all out: England need 285 runs to win
• England top order falls in quick succession; more than six runs per over required after 25 overs
• RESULT: England suffer shock defeat to Afghanistan

[14 October 2023 15:57 · Lawrence Ostlere]

Team news

England are expected to make changes ahead of this fixture which could see Ben Stokes return to the team if he is fit enough to play. Pace bowlers like Mark Wood and Chris Woakes could be rested with David Willey and Gus Atkinson making their returns to the line-up. Moeen Ali sat out the win over Bangladesh and could slot back in as the wicket in Delhi doesn’t provide much help for the seamers.

Afghanistan should name an unchanged side as they look to pull off a shock victory over England. The XI impressed against India on this ground and can use the familiar conditions to challenge England.

England vs Afghanistan

Teams will be announced at the toss

14 October 2023 09:31

[14 October 2023 09:30 · Lawrence Ostlere]

England vs Afghanistan

Follow live coverage of England vs Afghanistan from the ODI World Cup tomorrow.

The ICC Test Championship sees nine teams compete across a two-year cycle of matches before a two-team final decides the winner. The inaugural competition was won by New Zealand after a thrilling victory over India in June 2021.

The 50-over World Cup is far older and has been competed for since back in 1975. Australia are the record winners having run out victorious on five occasions (1987, 1999, 2003, 2007 and 2015). England took the 2019 crown after a dramatic Ben Stokes-inspired super-over win over New Zealand at Lord's.

The shortest form of the game sees teams compete in Twenty20. The newest format has been an instant global hit with a number of hugely-lucrative competitions massively popular all over the world. Australia are reigning world champions having taken victory in the 2021 tournament.