"Curious decision to bowl at the toss" - Michael Vaughan after England's defeat to India in T20 World Cup 2024 semi-final

Former England skipper Michael Vaughan has questioned Jos Buttler's decision to field first in the T20 World Cup 2024 semi-final against India on Thursday (June 27) in Guyana. The 49-year-old reckons the dryness of the surface and Indian spinners' effectiveness should have prompted the defending champions to do nothing but bat first.

After Team India amassed 171/7 in their stipulated 20 overs, their spinners in Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel came into play. The duo exploited the conditions to significant effect, sharing six wickets between them to bowl England out for 103. In the process, the Men in Blue reached the final.

In his column for The Telegraph, Vaughan wrote that England backed themselves to chase, given they had done it quite well two years ago. He wrote:

"My belief is that England’s issues with these conditions run a bit deeper than just the coach and captain. They made some mistakes. It was a curious decision to bowl at the toss. I am sure the dodgy weather played its part but on a dry pitch like that against India’s spinners, surely you bat first. Perhaps England were stuck in their ways because they chased so well against India in Adelaide two years ago."

Vaughan pointed out a host of issues with England, including poor fielding and a lack of adaptability on slower wickets. He continued:

"But there are three key issues in these conditions for England. First, they are not a great fielding team, and do not have enough athletes. They had a couple of good moments but are way below South Africa’s level. With the bat they lack the power game on slower pitches, and with the ball they are a bit predictable. It’s a bit unfair to compare them to Jasprit Bumrah, the best in the world, but how many of our seamers have slower balls that completely deceive the batsman?"

England were on the brink of group-stage elimination after losing to Australia. However, victories over Oman and Namibia, followed by a little help from Australia, helped them sneak into the Super 8 stage. However, they progressed to the semi-finals convincingly.

"Not total panic stations" - Michael Vaughan

Vaughan went on to question the need to play an out-of-form Jonny Bairstow despite Will Jacks' availability. The cricketer-turned-commentator has also called for Jamie Smith's inclusion moving forward.

The former captain went on:

"It is not total panic stations as they have enough good cricketers coming through to ensure that remain a competitive white-ball team. They do need a chance, though. Will Jacks was dropped midway through the tournament and Bairstow backed despite looking past his sell-by date and struggles against spin. Jamie Smith needs to play more. They would love a really good left-handed batsman, but I’m not sure who that player is at the moment."

Vaughan elaborated:

"I would encourage England to make a cultural decision to look ahead to the World Cups in 2026 and 2027, and the exact skills they are going to need. They will be looking at 30 or more players, and they must decide which of them have the game to thrive in those tournaments."

England don't have a white-ball assignment until September 2024.