A few reasons showcased for England's poor performance in Cricket World Cup 2023.

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England came into the ODI World Cup as the defending champion and was also considered one of the favourites in this edition of the tournament.

However, a fortnight and three defeats later, a spot in the semifinals looks difficult for Jos Buttler’s men.

And, after suffering a 229-run defeat against South Africa at the Wankhede Stadium, the England captain admitted that the road to the last-four will be ‘incredibly difficult’. “We haven’t left ourselves any margin from this point in. But we’ll keep the belief,” Buttler said.

The defending champions in white ball cricket (both ODI and T20) haven’t looked like a strong team so far in the competition. Not even Ben Strokes' presence could help England salvage some pride.

First of all, England lost to New Zealand, won over Bangladesh, and suffered a shocking defeat in their next two games against Afghanistan and South Africa.

Losing to Afghanistan was the worst thing and to top it all, the team didn’t look hurt. If Jos Buttler and his men had felt any hurt, it would have reflected in the scorecard at least.

Losing to South Africa only proves to show that they would have to play out of their skin to make it to the last four. That means, England who have one win out of four matches, will need to win five of their remaining games to bolster their semifinal dream.

Otherwise, the competition will be restricted amongst teams like India, New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, and Pakistan.

England travels to Bengaluru next for its game against Sri Lanka on October 26.