England's Lucky Escape - Which Problems Require Resolution?

Could it have been fortune favouring England's side, or the simple inevitability when planning an international cricket competition amid Sri Lanka's rainy period?

Either way, the English team narrowly escaped versus their Pakistani opponents this past Wednesday - in a major way.

The squad had been three wins from three, cruising through their initial pool matches with just a struggling Pakistani side standing in their way to entering crucial encounters against India and Australia unbeaten.

It should have been smooth sailing: England have only ever lost just one match against Pakistan, during a Twenty20 game in 2013, and never in One Day International cricket.

However, rather than taking momentum into those two big games against the tournament favourites, they have been jolted through a startling reality check.

The English side was completely dominated for 25 overs before the first bout of rain fell in Colombo, slumping to 79-7 as Pakistan's seamers skillfully exploited a helpful but not unplayable surface, before the spinners got to work against the vulnerable English middle batting lineup.

Then the rain cruelly denied the Pakistani team a notable victory once the weather improved providing sixty minutes of opportunity and enough time to achieve thirty-four without loss chasing 113 runs, The English team's relieved expressions juxtaposed by skipper Fatima Sana's disappointment as the Colombo outfield became submerged.

This was England's lucky escape leaving them no option but to learn from it.

Moving forward, it's improbable to get away with another.

Pakistan Expose Obvious Vulnerability

This tournament's fixture list presents challenges. Focusing particularly on England, the squad is competing in their group-stage games across four different venues, all providing varying playing conditions which essentially requires learning on the job.

Against Sri Lanka merely ninety-six hours earlier, England were on a different surface but one which offered turn, bounce with minimal assistance for the seamers. This surface differed, while English batters did not adapt quickly enough to its characteristics.

Pakistan had clear plans and executed them, constantly challenging the English team's vulnerable batting through moving the ball sharply into the right-handers.

Diana Baig's dismissal against Tammy Beaumont deviated dramatically off the pitch, the opener playing a dramatic non-shot only to see her off-stump being disturbed.

Sciver-Brunt's dismissal deviated two and a half degrees off the pitch, comparable to the turn you would expect from off-spin bowling, with the English captain's response arms outstretched and astonished expression said it all - the team likely hadn't practiced for or anticipated such conditions.

Amy Jones was also bowled by Fatima, that delivery deviating two degrees off the pitch, while another ball moved one point six degrees resulting in Heather Knight's leg-before decision.

It was the first time across all cricket formats that an England top seven were all either bowled or leg-before since early twentieth century, demonstrating Pakistani bowling accuracy aiming consistently at the wickets.

By the end of England's revised 31 overs, they had faced sixty-one deliveries that would have struck the wickets. They lost eight wickets to them while managing only twenty-three runs.

Australian and Indian Teams Await Their Turn

The English squad journeys to Indore for their next two games to face their most challenging rivals in India, on Sunday, and Australia on 22 October.

Neither are ideal opponents to be facing with batting weaknesses needing correction but the pitches there are expected to be flatter and friendlier for batting.

Heather Knight's determined approach that saved the team against Bangladesh and Nat Sciver-Brunt's quality ensured they posted a winning total against Sri Lanka, yet when both departed quickly against Pakistan, the English team couldn't rebound.

{"Nat Sciver-Brunt and Heather Knight have accumulated greater runs between them compared to their teammates total at this tournament," World Cup winner Alex Hartley said during match commentary. "This statistic speaks volumes, and both were absent during the opening game. That represents a worry."

Beaumont and Jones have struggled against the swinging ball - stands of six, 24 and 13 after pursuing only seventy runs in their initial match versus South Africa - but Charlotte Edwards' first move in charge was to show faith and re-promote Jones, making it improbable she will disrupt the pair.

Following the top two batters, England's next best batter has been number eight Charlie Dean scoring a solid twenty-seven not out in a tense chase against Bangladesh, a handy 19 against Sri Lanka and she top-scored with 33 against Pakistan.

Occasional signs of potential from Alice Capsey at seven however Sophia Dunkley and Emma Lamb face difficulties beginning their innings against spin in the middle batting positions.

Lamb has 18 runs in three innings while Sophia Dunkley managed twenty-nine, both losing their wickets to spin, with Lamb being required to perform an unaccustomed position.

When batting in the top three, Lamb averages 44 in 61 innings including five hundreds. These three innings here are the first she has ever played at number six professionally in One Day International cricket.

Danni Wyatt-Hodge is England's unused batting option on the bench, having previously batted in middle positions over several seasons, so it will be interesting to see how long the Lamb trial persists.

England may have dodged a humiliating setback in this instance, but will be aware that circumstances won't become less challenging.

Indian and Australian teams wait. Any stumbles versus these opponents and England's campaign rapidly deteriorate.