‘Don’t panic,’ Root tells England

NOTTINGHAM: Joe Root urged England to keep calm and carry on after a surprise 14-run defeat by Pakistan at Trent Bridge on Monday checked their progress at the World Cup.

Both Root and Jos Buttler scored hundreds but Pakistan still managed to end a run of 11 straight losses in completed One-day Internationals (ODIs). But with all 10 teams playing each other in the round-robin group stage, one defeat is by no means the end of England’s latest bid to win the men’s World Cup for the first time.

Root now expects England to bounce back strongly against Bangladesh in Cardiff on Saturday. “The most important thing now for us as a group is not to panic,” he told reporters. “We know what works for us as a formula, and as a team, but other sides are allowed to play well and we’ve got to make sure we learn quickly and bounce back at Cardiff. “The temptation is to get a little bit tense, but one of our great strengths as a side is sticking to the way we go about things and be as smart as possible.”