‘Conditions changed’: England captain Jos Buttler, Ben Duckett blame Lahore dew after Australia’s record-breaking Champions Trophy chase | Cricket News
Australia’s record-breaking run-chase to kick-start their Champions Trophy campaign at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore has somewhat flattened England as they suffered a fourth successive ODI defeat on Saturday since the recent India tour earlier this month. Motoring on wicket-keeper Josh Inglis’ blistering century, Australia romped past a 352-run target to record the highest chase in Champions Trophy history, despite entering the tournament with a depleted squad. Inglis’ maiden ODI hundred had him finish on 120 not out off 86 balls with Australia cleaning up the chase with 15 balls to spare. With captain Steve Smith opting to field first, England put on a comprehensive batting display led by opener Ben Duckett’s 143-ball 165, the highest individual score in the tournament. However, both Duckett and England skipper Jos Buttler rued the dewy conditions that hampered their defense. Story continues below this ad “A fantastic game, both sides played well, credit to Australia,” Buttler said. “It was a fantastic innings from Inglis. 350 is a pretty good score, but it was wet and the dew was …
