E-mail this Article 
Print this Article 
Subscribe to RSS Feed we let pietersen down - vaughan
Pietersen made a superb 104.
Michael Vaughan admitted he and the rest of the England team had let century-maker Kevin Pietersen down as a defeat to Australia in Antigua left England needing three wins out of three to avoid a World Cup exit at the Super Eight stage.
Australia triumphed by seven wickets as they comfortably surpassed England's total of 247, which featured 104 from Pietersen and 77 from Ian Bell.
Andrew Flintoff's dismissal of Adam Gilchrist gave them hope but 86 from captain Ricky Ponting, an unbeaten 55 from Michael Clarke and a belligerent run-a-ball 28 from Andrew Symonds saw the Australians home as they gained revenge for defeat in the Commonwealth Bank series Down Under.
Vaughan told Sky Sports: "Around the 30th over we were 160-odd for two and we looked like posting 280-290 and I think on that wicket that would have been a really competitive total but at 247 we were still in the game, but Ricky played a tremendous innings and Michael Clarke saw them home so full credit to Australia, but I thought it was an area that we could have won today."
Asked whether too many batsmen were struggling for form, Vaughan added: "That's probably right. Not many of us are playing that well but Kevin Pietersen's 100 was fantastic and you always want a guy who gets a hundred to be on the winning side and we didn't play well enough around him to get that 280-290.
"We are going to have to win the last three games now to reach the semis."
Australia captain Ponting added on Sky Sports: "It was a pretty tight game right the way through, Kevin Pietersen and Bell played beautifully and I thought the difference in the game today was the intensity when things weren't going well for us. Our fielding was great right the way through and our bowlers did a terrific job.
Clarke, whose unbeaten 55 helped Australia home said: "I found it very hard to score but Ricky made my job easier.
"Our bowlers did a fantastic job and we managed to pull it back in the end. We got a great start from Gilchrist and (Matthew) Hayden which gave us help further down the order and made my life a lot easier.
"Symonds played fantastic cricket. He hasn't had much time out in the middle and it's good to see him in some form."
The equation for England is now simple, having lost matches to Sri Lanka and reigning champions Australia inside a handful of days in Antigua.
They head off to Barbados tomorrow, where they will have to beat Bangladesh, South Africa and West Indies to maintain hopes of a semi-final spot.
"It's very frustrating," admitted Vaughan. "We got to bed the other night thinking we should have won that game and we know we were in a great position to put Australia under more pressure today.
"We are very, very close to being a really good one-day team.
"We are just not winning critical periods and doing enough during the whole match."
Nevertheless, Australia captain Ponting, whose side have now 24 World Cup matches on the trot, insisted England had pushed his side harder than anyone else thus far.
"That was the most we've been tested," Ponting said. "They looked like they were going to post a few more than they did at 164 for two.
"That is the point at which the game turned for us."
England might have applied further pressure in the closing stages of the seven-wicket chase when Pietersen held a catch off Andrew Symonds in the 42nd over but threw it back into play as he stumbled across the rope at midwicket.
Umpires Rudi Koertzen and Billy Bowden consulted with Vaughan and the England fielders before two runs was given as the outcome.
"I was trying to say that he had it in his hands in control but he wasn't in control of his feet," said Vaughan.
"Being honest it wasn't an option to give him out, we were clutching at straws at that stage."
Post to the Mailbox!
Be the first to post a comment on this story