"Something just clicked" - Liam Plunkett dissects England's 2019 World Cup win after struggles in 2023 campaign

Former England seamer Liam Plunkett has explained the reason behind the team's failure to defend the title won in 2019. The right-arm seamer suggested that crowd support was the most important factor behind their 2019 win.

England are realistically out of the 2023 World Cup after slumping to five losses in six games. Led by Jos Buttler, the defending champions have fallen well short with both bat and ball and suffered losses to Sri Lanka and Afghanistan.

Speaking to INews.co.uk, Plunkett, an integral member of the 2019 squad, said that it has been a collective failure from the squad. The 38-year-old said that they had hopes of winning the World Cup till the end in 2019.

"In 2019, we were playing in England, we had the support of the crowd, and something just clicked.

"Sometimes it’s hard to put a finger on what it was – but if someone failed then you had five or six players who would take the reins and perform. That hasn’t happened this time. We lost a few games (in 2019), but we bounced back. Everyone was open and honest, we had chats, and we backed each other."

England's most recent loss came to hosts India in Lucknow. While the tourists delivered a good bowling performance to restrict India to 229, they lost by 100 runs.

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"No one could have foreseen this" - Liam Plunkett

England captain Jos Buttler (Image Credits: Twitter)

Plunkett also observed how the current squad lacks confidence and that it hurts to see them lose in thumping fashion:

"They will still be going into games thinking they’re going to win, but they’re lacking in confidence and the teams they’re playing against just keep getting better and better. No one could have foreseen this.

"It’s rough to watch because you know just how good these cricketers are. Watching those guys go out to bat, you were watching highlight reels right in front of your face. Some of the innings those boys played were ridiculous."

England next lock horns against Australia on Saturday, November 4, in Ahmedabad.