England can do little more than strive to beat Oman and Namibia, beat them well, and hope Australia then do them a serious favour against Scotland. But after Josh Hazlewood entertained the notion of Australia potentially manipulating that match to eliminate the defending champions – something that could risk up to a two‑match ban for their captain, Mitch Marsh, if proved – these next few days could yet become spicier than a bottle of Antigua’s Grannie Annie pepper sauce.
The scenario facing the defending champions has been well trailed since their 36-run defeat against Australia, with two wins – starting against Oman on Thursday – and a stark improvement on a net run-rate of minus 1.8 their only hope of making the Super Eight phase.
