England through to Cricket World Cup final after dominating Australia

England have reached their first Cricket World Cup final since 1992 with an eight-wicket win over Australia.

A superb batting display from Jason Roy laid the foundations for England to win in just 32.1 overs after bowling Australia out for 221.

The England bowling attack got off to a flyer as Jofra Archer took out Aaron Finch for a golden duck before David Warner fell for nine off Chris Woakes. Woakes, who finished with bowling figures of 3-20, was at it again to bowl Peter Handscomb (4) as Australia slipped to 14-3.

Steve Smith and Alex Carey did put in a formidable partnership to boost Australia’s innings. Smith put up 85 off 119 balls and Carey hit a knock of 46 but only two other Australians, Glenn Maxwell (22) and Mitchell Starc (29), hit double figures.

Over to you, Jason Roy, then. The England opener hit a stunning innings with five sixes and nine fours on the way to 85 in just 65 balls. Jonny Bairstow was first to fall for 34 and Roy was finally out in controversial fashion, caught behind by Carey despite replays showing the ball did not hit the bat.

That did not matter one bit for England though. With Joe Root and Eoin Morgan at the crease, they guided England towards victory and finished on 49 not out and 45 not out, a boundary from Root finishing the Australians off with 18 overs to spare.

England will play New Zealand at Lords on Sunday, after the Kiwis defeated India yesterday.

Cover Photo: Percita from Canberra, Australia [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons