England opener Jason Roy will be given until the last moment to prove his fitness for Sunday’s crucial World Cup showdown with India.
Roy is working his way back from a hamstring tear which has forced him to miss the games against Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Australia, but is being assessed on a daily basis ahead of the Edgbaston encounter.
An ECB spokesman said: “Jason Roy is making good progress from his hamstring injury. He is being assessed every day. Yesterday he batted in the nets and was also running shuttles on the outfield.
“A decision on whether he’ll be fit to resume against India will be made when we train on Friday and Saturday at Edgbaston.”
Roy is one of a series of fitness concerns with the hosts facing a fight to make the semi-finals after back-to-back defeats by Sri Lanka and Australia.
Player ratings from England vs AustraliaShow all 23 1 /23Player ratings from England vs Australia
Player ratings from England vs Australia Australia won by 64 runs
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Player ratings from England vs Australia James Vince 1 Another failure, a two-ball duck, beaten by Behrendorff’s pace and swing. A poor shot. So proficient at county level and with undoubted promise, but yet to make his presence known internationally, and you wonder if he ever will.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Jonny Bairstow 3 Some eye-catching strokes in a 27 that seemed destined to be more, timing the ball wonderfully until a curiously-played pull to a ball going away from him settled into the hands of deep midwicket.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Joe Root 3 Mitchell Starc was simply too quick and too good for an uncharacteristically insecure Root, like Vince beaten by a vicious inswinger at real pace. Australia’s opening pair showed the merits of pitching the ball up in conditions aiding the bowlers.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Eoin Morgan 5 Captained well, using his bowlers intelligently to drag England back into the game as it threatened to slip away. A disappointment with the bat, again showing vulnerability against short and sharp bowling early on, caught at fine leg off Starc.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Ben Stokes 8 Brilliant with ball and bat. Looked the most potent of England’s seamers as the ball softened, removing Khawaja with a middle-stump missile. A quite magnificent knock in tough circumstances with the bat before Starc produced an unplayable yorker. Hopefully the calf issue was just cramp on a muggy day.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Jos Buttler 5 A steadying 25 after England’s top order disaster but they needed Buttler to go deeper into the innings in tandem with Stokes. A very poor missed stumping to give Khawaja a reprieve off Rashid docks him a point. The errors with the gloves seem to be coming more and more frequently.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Moeen Ali 4 Another disappointing outing for Moeen, who came in after the horse had bolted, rather, and did little in the way of retrieving it. England’s most expensive bowler, though he did manage to pry a well-set Warner with a kicking off-break.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Chris Woakes 7 Just about England’s best with the ball, unlucky to go wicketless in his new ball spell (though perhaps guilty of bowling too short on the whole) and returning strongly at the death. Showed some fight with the willow.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Adil Rashid 7 Probably Rashid’s best spell of the tournament on a pitch that didn’t offer too much for him to play with, ticking along beneath five-an-over despite an expensive first six balls and getting through his entire allocation. Had some fun with the bat, too.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Jofra Archer 6 Like Woakes he can consider himself unlucky that one of Australia’s many false shots in the first powerplay did not produce a wicket, but his natural back-of-a-length style was not ideal in conditions that looked to favour fuller bowling.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Mark Wood 6 Loose in his first spell, much better in his second, but on the whole a touch expensive and like England’s other seamers generally too short.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Aaron Finch 8 out of 10 Battled his way to 50, built impressively to 100, but the post-ton explosion Australia needed never came as Archer bounced him out, Finch perhaps guilty of losing focus after reaching the landmark.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia David Warner 7 A composed 50 after surviving Archer and Woakes’ tests early on. Out tamely to Moeen Ali soon after, however, when well set.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Usman Khawaja 5 Never looked truly comfortable at the crease and played right around a full and straight ball from Ben Stokes that thumped into middle stump. Redeemed himself in the field with a brilliant grab on the square-leg boundary to dismiss Buttler.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Steve Smith 6 Looked good as wickets tumbled around him but fell before he could cash in. Two missed run-outs blighted his effort in the field.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Glenn Maxwell 5 It hasn’t quite happened for Maxwell with the bat in the World Cup so far. Two thumping pulls off Archer promised much, a tame dismissal to Wood delivered little. Smart work on the boundary to hand Finch a catch and end Woakes’ cameo.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Marcus Stoinis 6 Sold down the river a little by Smith as he charged back to the danger end for a second that was almost certainly there. It mightn’t have mattered – Stoinis never found his stride. Coaxed Aaron Finch into a woeful review with ball-in-hand but broke the crucial partnership of Stokes and Buttler in slightly fortuitous fashion.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Alex Carey 7 A very useful cameo to lift Australia over 280. There’s an argument to be made that the keeper-batsman should come in ahead of Stoinis – he certainly looks in better touch.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Mitchell Starc 9 Exceptional. A brilliant new-ball burst, executing his plans perfectly to snare Root then Morgan, before producing the most perfect of yorkers to rid England of Stokes. On track to be leading wicket-taker at consecutive World Cups – he’s a special bowler.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Jason Behrendorff 9 Justified his inclusion with a lovely five-fotr. Hooping inswinger at pace to snare Vince early on, before switching ends and getting Bairstow with the short ball. Behrendorff’s new ball ability deepens the Australia attack. Returned later on to grab three more and his best ODI figures, superb ones of 5-44 at that.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Nathan Lyon 7 Competent and constricting. Australia didn’t need him to be too potent today, and he made sure the pressure stayed on.
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Player ratings from England vs Australia Pat Cummins 6 Somewhat unbothersome to the England batsmen, oddly, but tough to consistently score from in a slightly different role with Behrendorff into the side.
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Leg-spinner Adil Rashid came into the tournament with a shoulder problem and reported soreness after Tuesday’s defeat by Australia, although he is not thought to be a doubt for the weekend.
The spokesman said: “Adil Rashid has some soreness to his right shoulder. He will be assessed over the next few days but he is expected to be available for selection on Sunday.”
England also have a concern over paceman Jofra Archer, but all-rounder Ben Stokes, who underwent treatment for a calf problem on the pitch at Lord’s, will be available.
The spokesman continued: “Jofra Archer has tightness to his left side and will continue to be assessed ahead of the India match.
“Ben Stokes sustained tight calves in yesterday’s match. He will be fit for Sunday’s match. He felt better after the game.”
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