Highlights, 2019 World Cup, 2nd Semi-final: England trounces Australia, reaches World Cup final

Australis vs England, 2019 World Cup 2nd Semi-final: Hello and welcome to our coverage of the 2nd Semi-final of the 2019 World Cup between Australia and England live from Edgbaston, Birmingham. Aaron Finch has won the toss and Australia will bat first. It is a wonderful pitch to bat on and loads of runs will be scored. Peter Handscomb has come into the side in place of Usman Khawaja while England have gone unchanged into the game. Will England go into the final of the World Cup after 27 years? Remains to be seen. Follow scores and updates of the AUS vs ENG game here (Match scorecard | When and where to watch Stream)

England beat Australia by 8 wickets

* The England innings was all about Jason Roy! Yes, there were scores from the other batters as well but it was Roy's innings which was the stand out. He was the mainstay in his 124-run stand with Bairstow which more or less sealed the deal for the England side. Roy though was unlucky to be dismissed 15 short of a ton but Morgan and Root then ensured there were no further wickets to fall and the two took England over the line.

* England have literally barged into the finals! We are now sure of having a new World Cup winner. The English side has done it with so much ease. They have cruised through. They have made the might Aussies look so tiny.

21.44 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! That's it! England go to the finals for the first time since 1992. Good length ball on off, Morgan flat-bats it over mid on for a boundary. The crowd erupted in joy. The ODI skipper and Test skipper have a hug and smile in the middle.

21.40 IST: Mitchell Starc to Joe Root, FOUR! Just used the pace of the ball. Good length ball on off, Root drives it through covers and gets a boundary. Moves to 48 and now England just a boundary away from sealing their place in the Final.

21.39 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Joe Root, FOUR! Too good! Bouncer on middle, Root pulls it through mid-wicket for a boundary. Just 9 needed now. The 1992 inspired kit is taking this England team to the finals for the first time since 1992.

21.32 IST: Nathan Lyon to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! Short and wide outside off, Morgan lofts his punch over extra cover for a boundary. There was a shout for catch it but don't know for whom.

* Drinks Break! Nothing much to tell, England are cruising along and have all but sealed their place in the Finals.

21.29 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Eoin Morgan, Morgan comes down the track and hits it to mid on. Another maiden for Behrendorff.

21.23 IST: Nathan Lyon to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! Cut and cut hard this time. Short around off, Morgan gets on his back foot and cuts it through cover-point for a boundary.

21.23 IST: Nathan Lyon to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! Sweeps it past the fine-leg this time. This is increasingly becoming a cake-walk for Morgan.

21.21 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! PULLED IT! Short, but not too quick. Ample time for Morgan to roll his wrist and dispatch it towards backward square leg.

21.13 IST: Nathan Lyon to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! Morgan had been trying that shot since the beginning of the over. Get on to the right leg and reverse-sweep the ball over the point. 

21.11 IST: Mitchell Starc to Joe Root, FOUR! Poor ball this! Full on the pads, Root flicks it fine down the leg side to the fine leg fence for a boundary.

21.08 IST: Pat Cummins to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! Up and over! A little too full by Cummins. Morgan lofts it over the mid off fielder and bags a boundary.

21.01 IST: Mitchell Starc to Eoin Morgan, FOUR! Good length ball around off, all the men in the deep are square on either side. Morgan lofts it over square leg for a boundary.

20.52 IST: Pat Cummins to Eoin Morgan, Back of a length ball on the body, Morgan defends it to the side of the pitch on the off side. Eoin shouts a loud no to his partner.

20.48 IST: Pat Cummins to Jason Roy, OUT! Caught! Roy is unhappy and honestly Dharmasena took a long time to raise his finger. Short ball on the leg side, Roy goes chasing after it with his pull.

20.45 IST: Pat Cummins to Joe Root, FOUR! 4th boundary for Root and he has played just 9 balls. Length ball outside off, Root cuts it through point for a boundary.

20.41 IST: Marcus Stoinis to Jason Roy, MISFIELD AND FOUR! It is raining boundaries despite the fall of the wicket. Short and on middle, Roy pulls it towards mid-wicket. It bounces just in front of the fielder there who lets it through and a boundary.

20.39 IST: Mitchell Starc to Joe Root, FOUR! Strac bowls it on the pads, Root just helps it on its way fine down the leg side for a boundary. Carey dives to his left but to no avail.

20.37 IST: Mitchell Starc to Joe Root, FOUR! Not the most convincing ways to get off the mark but Root won't mind.

20.36 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jonny Bairstow, OUT! LBW! It looked plumb and it was plumb. Good length ball pitching on middle and leg, it straightens up a bit. Bairstow looks to play it across the line but misses. The Australian players put in a loud, confident appeal. The umpire raises his finger.

20.33 IST: Marcus Stoinis to Jason Roy, FOUR! That has gone to the fence like a tracer bullet! None of the Australian players even moved there. This is short again, Roy comes down the track and smashes it through mid-wicket. Runs needed is 100 now.

20.29 IST: Steve Smith to Jason Roy, SIX! Hat-trick of sixes and Roy is ending Smith's bowling career here.

20.28 IST: Steve Smith to Jason Roy, SIX! Two in two here. Roy is a man possessed.

20.27 IST: Steve Smith to Jason Roy, SIX! Going...going...gone! Floated on middle and leg, Roy clears his front leg and smashes it over long on. Maxwell jumps and looks to take it but he cannot do anything about it.

* DRINKS! England are doing it very easily at the moment. They need another 129 runs and have 10 wickets in hand. The two out there are in the mood to finish this off quickly. Australia on the other hand, look down and out. They need someone to put their hand up and not get one, two but three wickets very quickly.

20.22 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jason Roy, FOUR! What a way to bring up his fifty! Good length ball on off, Roy creams his drive through covers and gets to his 5th World Cup fifty. His 18th in ODIs.

20.19 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jason Roy, FOUR! This is just too good! Once again Starc bowls it on the slot in middle, Roy lofts it wide of mid off and scores a boundary. He makes it look all so easy, does Roy.

20.18 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jonny Bairstow, FOUR! Powered away! Starc overpitches it on off, Bairstow moves away just a bit and lofts it over mid off for a boundary.

20.14 IST: Pat Cummins to Jason Roy, FOUR! Easy-peasy! This is down the leg side, Roy helps it on its way to the fine leg fence and bags a boundary. England are cruising at the moment.

20.12 IST: Nathan Lyon to Jonny Bairstow, FOUR!

* Jonny Bairstow has taken his pads out and he looks in a lot of pain. The physio is out to have a look. He has had ankle issues before too.

20.04 IST: Pat Cummins to Jonny Bairstow, Shorter and outside off, JB guides it past point. They take one, Bairstow slips as he turns for the second but still goes for it and completes it. He is in pain now though.

20.01 IST: Pat Cummins to Jonny Bairstow, FIVE WIDES! Bonus runs! This is short and down the leg side. Carey moves to that direction and looks to collect it but it goes over his gloves and into the fine leg fence.

19.58 IST: Nathan Lyon to Jason Roy, FOUR! This is just brutal from Roy! This is just unfair on the bowler. Lyon bowls a flighted ball on middle and leg, Roy gets on his knees and reverse sweeps it over point for a boundary.

19.56 IST: Nathan Lyon to Jason Roy, SIX! Lyon is welcomed with a massive six. Not the welcome Nathan would have wanted. He tosses it up on middle, Roy demolishes it over the long on fence for a biggie.

19.52 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Jason Roy, Another good looking cover drive. Fuller on off, Roy drives it through covers. The fielder inside the circle dives and gets a hand to it. Glenn Maxwell from sweeper cover cleans it up. Two taken.

19.50 IST: Pat Cummins to Jason Roy, FOUR! Easily done! Another length ball and this time it is a little too straight. Roy shuffles across and flicks it through backward square leg for a boundary.

19.45 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Jonny Bairstow, FOUR! Venom, that's what it was hit with! Overpitched on middle and leg, Bairstow drives it through mid on. Behrendorff looks to block it but he is down the ground.

19.38 IST: Pat Cummins to Jonny Bairstow, Fuller on off, Bairstow looks to drive but the bat turns in his hand as the ball makes contact with the ball and it goes to mid on.

* Pat Cummins is on! Australia need a wicket. Can he deliver it?

19.36 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jason Roy, SIX! What a shot! First maximum of the day and that was his with so much ease, wow! Full on the pads, Roy just lifts his flick and sends it over the square leg fence for the first maximum of the innings. The fielder at fine leg goes after it but can just bring the ball back in play.

19.33 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jonny Bairstow, FOUR! Crunched! Starc is guilty of giving width outside off, Bairstow with the form that he is in, won't miss that and he smashes it through point for a boundary.

19.31 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Jason Roy, On top of middle, Roy looks to play it to the on side, the ball though goes to the left of deep mid-wicket off the inner half of his bat allowing them to get a brace.

19.27 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jason Roy, FOUR! Gorgeous! That is so gorgeous. Starc overpitches this on off, Roy gets on his front foot and plays a delightful cover drive for a boundary. The over ends the way it started it, i.e, with a boundary.

19.24 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jason Roy, FOUR! Beautiful hands by Roy! Fuller around off, Roy gets on his front foot and drives it right off the meat of his bat through covers for a boundary. The sound the ball made after connection was just so sweet.

19.21 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Jonny Bairstow, Length ball around off, Bairstow pushes it to the man at cover.

19.19 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Jonny Bairstow, Full on off, Bairstow defends it towards mid on and shouts a loud wait on to his partner.

19.16 IST: Mitchell Starc to Jason Roy, Ouch! That must have hurt! Starc steams in and fires one in at 151 kph. It is on the body, Roy looks to play but gets beaten by the pace. The ball hits him around the belly region.

* Mitchell Starc to bowl from the other end with the second new ball.

19.11 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Jonny Bairstow, FOUR! Bairstow is off the mark and that too in style. Fuller around off, Bairstow gets on his front foot and plays a brilliant square drive for a boundary.

19.08 IST: Jason Behrendorff to Jason Roy, Behrendorff starts with a good length ball on off, it nips back in. Roy looks to play it on the off side but it goes off the inner half of his bat to square leg.

* We are back for the chase.

* A top, top bowling performance by England! Their bowlers have been spot on in this big occasion. Eoin Morgan could not have asked for anything better after being asked to field first. They will surely be the happier side heading into the break.

18.37 IST: Mark Wood to Jason Behrendorff, OUT! Bowled! That's the end of the Australian innings. They do not bat their full quota of 50-overs. Wood steams in and bowls a full, straight and pacy yorker on off, Behrenndorff cannot get his bat down in time and the ball goes onto hit the stumps. AUSTRALIA BOWLED OUT FOR 223.

18.32 IST: Chris Woakes to Nathan Lyon, Good length ball on off, Lyon does well to defend it.

18.28 IST: Chris Woakes to Mitchell Starc, OUT! Caught! Once again two wickets fall in quick succession.

18.26 IST: Chris Woakes to Steve Smith, OUT! Run Out! End of a brilliant, brilliant inning here from Steve Smith. Back of a length ball on the pads, Smith looks to flick but gets hit on the pads. The ball goes to the left of Buttler behind. Starc looks for a single and Smith goes with it. Buttler removes his glove and scores a direct hit at the bowler's end.

18.19 IST: Liam Plunkett to Steve Smith, FOUR! Good way to end the over for Australia. Back of a length ball on off, Smith waits back and pulls it through mid-wicket for a boundary. End of a very expensive over from Plunkett. 14 runs off the over.

18.16 IST: Liam Plunkett to Mitchell Starc, SIX! That has gone out of here! Fuller around off, Starc frees his arm and smashes it over long off fence for a maximum. He didn't time it too well but had enough to send it over.

18.11 IST: Mark Wood to Mitchell Starc, FOUR! Bludgeoned! A welcome boundary for Australia. This is half volley on off, Starc powers it through mid off and bags a boundary.

18.07 IST: Liam Plunkett to Steve Smith, A direct hit and Smith was in trouble! This is shorter and outside off, Smith mistimes his pull toward mid-wicket. Root fumbles and the batters go for it. Root has a shy at the non-striker's end but misses.

18.00 IST: Liam Plunkett to Mitchell Starc, A single to end the over! England won't mind as Starc will be on strike. Fuller and around middle, Starc hits it down to long on for one.

* Powerplay 3 time! Now a maximum of 5 fielders can be placed outside the 30-yard circle till the end of this innings. The big question here is, can Australia bat till the end?

17.50 IST: Jofra Archer to Mitchell Starc, Comes around the wicket and bowls it on off. It comes in with the angle, Starc looks to defend but it goes wide of first slip off the upper half of his bat and gets a single to get off the mark.

17.47 IST: Adil Rashid to Pat Cummins, OUT! Another one bites the dust! A sharp, sharp catch at first slip. A googly outside off, Cummins looks to play it against the turn through the off side but it goes off the outside edge and quickly to Root who takes it at first slip. 200 now looks difficult! Rashid gets his third. He has not had a great World Cup so far but has come to the party in this big, big game.

17.39 IST: Adil Rashid to Steve Smith, Googly pitching on off, Smith looks to defend and does so off the inner half of his bat.

* Into the bowlers now. Pat Cummins walks out to bat. He can bat but can he bat and give support to Smith till the end of this innings?

17.35 IST: Jofra Archer to Glenn Maxwell, OUT! Soft, soft dismissal! And the ploy to get back Archer has worked. Morgan wanted Maxwell's wicket and Archer gets it in what probably would have been his last ball of this spell.

17.31 IST: Adil Rashid to Glenn Maxwell, FOUR! A hit-me ball! Short and on middle, it sits up to be hit. Maxwell says thank you very much as he goes back and pulls it hard over mid-wicket for a boundary. 150 up for Australia.

17.30 IST: Adil Rashid to Glenn Maxwell, Two! Rashid gives it air and Maxwell drags it over mid-wicket. It is not right off the middle so the fielder in the deep gets across and keeps it down to two.

17.28 IST: Jofra Archer to Glenn Maxwell, Goes for a yorker but ends up bowling a full ball on the pads, it is worked through square leg for one.

* Drinks Break!

17.21 IST: Adil Rashid to Glenn Maxwell, SIX! Enough of blocking says Maxwell. He clears long on for the first biggie of the day. Rashid gives it air and Maxwell's eyes lit up. He goes against the turn but does so nicely and hits it over the fence.

17.17 IST: Jofra Archer to Glenn Maxwell, FOUR! No calmness here, this was pure aggression. Archer bends his back and bowls it short. Maxwell picks the length early and whacks his pull through mid-wicket for a boundary.

17.11 IST: Ben Stokes to Steve Smith, FOUR! Through the covers! It is a little too full and on off, Smith strokes it in the gap in the cover region and bags a boundary. Smith continues his fight from one end.

17.06 IST: Adil Rashid to Marcus Stoinis, OUT! LBW! Rashid gets his second in the over and once again, Australia find themselves in trouble. Stoinis fails to make an impact yet again. He does not trouble the scorers here. Rashid bowls the googly outside off. Stoinis had no clue which way the ball is going to turn. He looks to hit it through the off side but misses as it turns back in. The ball hits the pad. A huge appeal and the umpire raises the finger. End of a brilliant over for England. 2 runs and 2 wickets.

17.05 IST: Adil Rashid to Steve Smith, 1 run, 50 for Smith!

17.01 IST: Adil Rashid to Alex Carey, OUT! Carey holes out! The partnership has been broken! Carey falls 4 short of a half ton. He was looking to go after the leg spinner. Comes down the track to him and looks to whip it over the mid-wicket fence but it goes right off the toe-end and straight to Vince, the substitute who makes no mistake. A much-needed wicket for India. They continue to remain on top.

16.55 IST: Adil Rashid to Alex Carey, FOUR! Crunched! Out comes the slog sweep and it has been hit right off the middle, it is also in the gap and Carey bags another boundary.

Half-the-innings done and dusted, and Australia are 103. A great recovery from Smith and Carey after the early setbacks.

16.44 IST: Liam Plunkett to Alex Carey, FOUR! That is class! Just class! Australia get off 87 in style. Fuller and around off, Carey leans into it and strokes it through covers and the ball races away to the fence.

16.41 IST: Adil Rashid to Steve Smith, Floats it up on off, Smith pushes it back towards the bowler. Rashid initially moves to his left, he is wrong-footed so he then fails to stop it with a dive to his right and a single to long off.

16.38 IST: Liam Plunkett to Steve Smith, A single eventually! This is on a length and around off, straightens after pitching. Smith is squared up as he tries to defend. It goes off the outer half towards point. Stokes there fails to stop it with a dive and a run is conceded.

16.35 IST: Adil Rashid to Alex Carey, FOUR! Uppish but in the gap! Carey would have surely be worried for a moment. Rashid tosses it up outside off, he wants Carey to play the drive. Carey does so but finds the gap in the cover region and also the boundary.

16.28 IST: Mark Wood to Steve Smith, FOUR! Smith starting to accelerate here. Bouncer from Wood, Smith waits for it and then easily pulls it through square leg for a boundary.

16.26 IST: Liam Plunkett to Steve Smith, Good length and outside off, Smith guides it down to third man for one. The 50-run stand is up. A vital one as Australia were in big trouble when the two joined the association. It needs to continue though.

16.22 IST: Mark Wood to Steve Smith, FOUR! Lovely shot! He played that nice and late. This is on a length and outside off, Smith waits for it and guides it behind point. The ball races away to the fence. Spoils the over.

16.16 IST: Liam Plunkett to Steve Smith, FOUR! Straight down the ground! Welcome into the attack, Plunkett. This is a half volley on middle, Smith strokes it back past the bowler, through mid on and a boundary results. Also, the 50 is up for Australia.

* Drinks Break! England have completely dominated the first 15 overs of this game. They have bowled with pure venom and have Australia on the back foot. For the defending champions, Smith and Carey hold the key here. The duo steadied the ship from a similar situation against West Indies in the league stage. They will need to do something similar or better in this scenario. Run Rate should not be an issue here for them as the dynamic duo of Maxwell and Stoinis can hit the long ball. But right now, the need of the hour is stability for them. The hosts, meanwhile will look to break this stand.

16.11 IST: Mark Wood to Steve Smith, Edgy run! This is fuller and around off, Smith looks to drive it with a straight bat but the ball straightens after pitching. It goes off the outside edge down to third man for one.

16.06 IST: Ben Stokes to Steve Smith, FOUR! Pulled and pulled away smartly! Back of a length ball outside off, Smith gets on his back foot and pulls it through the vacant mid-wicket region for a boundary. First one of this semifinal for Smith.

* Alex Carey is getting more band-aids applied. We could see it did not stop bleeding and the physios are getting it done.

16.01 IST: Mark Wood to Alex Carey, Excellent fielding! This is on the pads, Carey looks to flick but misses. The ball brushes the pads and goes fine on the leg side. Woakes runs to his right and with a dive seems to have pushed it back in. The umpire goes upstairs to check and replays show that he has done fine. Saves two for his side.

15.58 IST: Mark Wood to Alex Carey, Loose stroke! This is full and wide outside off, Carey goes after it away from his body but the ball goes past the outside edge.

15.55 IST: Ben Stokes to Alex Carey, On the shorter side and on middle, Carey pushes it back to the bowler. A tidy start by Stokes.

15.49 IST: Chris Woakes to Steve Smith, A single now! Shorter and outside off, Smith gets on top of the bounce and guides it through cover-point for one.

15.43 IST: Chris Woakes to Alex Carey, FOUR! Sweet! That is a shot of a man in form. Slightly overpitched on off, Carey gets on his front foot and drives it beautifully through covers for a boundary.

15.37 IST: Jofra Archer to Alex Carey, Nasty, nasty delivery! A cut on the chin for Carey. He is bleeding! This is short and on middle, it zips through. Carey looks to evade it but the ball arrives before he can do so. He gets hit right on the helmet which falls off. Carey though does well to catch as it could have rolled onto the stumps too. Carey now needs a breather and rightly so. He is surrounded by the English players who are asking him if he is okay!

15.34 IST: Jofra Archer to Steve Smith, Direct hit and it would have been close! This is on a length and around off, Smith pushes it towards cover and takes off. Morgan gets to the ball and with a dive across has a shy at the non-striker's end but misses.

* 3 wickets down in no time, who walks out now? Will it be Stoinis? He has not been in the greatest form with the bat in this tournament. Will the go to Maxwell to play a bold counter attacking game now? Or will it be the in-form Alex Carey? He has been their best middle order batter in this tournament. It will be Carey who will join Smith in the middle now.

15.30 IST: Chris Woakes to Peter Handscomb, OUT! Drags it on! Handscomb always looked vulnerable against Woakes and he is the one to get him. England are all over Australia at the moment. Handscomb fails to make an impact after being brought in the side. A loose, loose shot to be honest. This is bowled slightly fuller and it is outside off. Handscomb, with no foot movement, pushes at it tentatively. The ball hits the inside edge and then shatters the stumps behind. Woakes with his second and Australia slip further.

15.28 IST: Chris Woakes to Peter Handscomb, OUT! Drags it on! Handscomb always looked vulnerable against Woakes and he is the one to get him. England are all over Australia at the moment. Handscomb fails to make an impact after being brought in the side.

15.25 IST: Jofra Archer to Peter Handscomb, That is unplayable! Just unplayable! This is angled into the off pole which means Handscomb has to play at it. He does so but is rooted to his crease. The ball pitches and straightens at 145 KPH. Difficult to adjust at that pace. The ball whizzes past the outside edge.

15.21 IST: Chris Woakes to Peter Handscomb, Another length ball and it comes back in. Handscomb once again ends up defending outside the line. It goes off the inner half through square leg for one.

15.18 IST: Jofra Archer to Steve Smith, Smith living with some danger here. Back of a length again around off, Smith looks to drive but gets an inside edge onto his pads.

15.16 IST: Chris Woakes to Peter Handscomb, NOT OUT! Umpire's call it is! A good review though by England, they do not lose it too. This is on a good length and around off, it pitches and jags back in. Handscomb tries to defend but misses to get hit on the front pad. A huge appeal but the umpire turns it down. England review. Replays roll in and they show that the ball is clipping the top of leg stump.

* England have taken their review now. Handscomb is the man in question. It is for an LBW.

15.14 IST: Chris Woakes to David Warner, OUT! EDGED AND GONE! Warner is out of here now. This is a dream start for England. They have both the openers back in the hut in no time. Woakes gets his first and now both the new ball bowlers have struck. This is huge because Warner has been the man for Australia with the bat. This is a top class delivery. This is slightly shorter and on off. Woakes seems to have bent his back on this one. He gets some extra bounce. Warner hops and tries to defend but fails to get on top of the bounce. An outside edge is induced and it goes at head height to Bairstow at firs slip. He takes it nicely. Australia in deep trouble here.

15.11 IST: Chris Woakes to David Warner, FOUR! Up and over! That has been hit straight as an arrow. Full and on middle, Warner lofts it nonchalantly over the bowler's head for a boundary.

* Steve Smith walks out at number 3. He walks in way sooner than he would have wanted. He scored a century the last time Australia were in the semi final of the ODI World Cup. Can he repeat that heroics again?

15.06 IST: Jofra Archer to Aaron Finch, OUT! Three reds and Finch, the Aussie skipper, bags a golden duck in Semi-Final 2. What a start for Archer. Finch is being booed as he walks off, he also takes Australia's only review along with him.

15.04 IST: Chris Woakes to David Warner, An excellent comeback after going for a boundary on the very first ball! Just the 4 from the first. Another length ball on off, this one angles away. Warner looks to defend but it goes off the outer half to point.

15.02 IST: Chris Woakes to David Warner, FOUR! What a start to semi-final 2 and what a way to get off the mark. Woakes goes full and outside off, he is looking for some swing. There ain't any and it turns out to be a half volley. Warner creams it through covers and bags a boundary.

14.58 IST: David Warner and Aaron Finch have come out to bat for Australia while Chris Woakes has the ball for England. Here we go!

14.51 IST:  Players are coming out for the national anthems. Aaron Finch leading his team out, Eoin Morgan leads the Englishmen on to the ground.

14.40 IST: What captains said:

Aaron Finch: We are going to have a bat. Looks like a really good wicket and don't think it will change too much. Hopefully we put up a big total. It gives a lot of experience to the occasion and gives the guys a chance to talk to people who have been in that position before. It is nice but come the day it does not count for a helluva lot. Just one, Peter Handscomb comes in for Usman Khawaja. Yes he (Smith) will bat at three today. He is a world class player and last World Cup he dominated that position. So hoping for much more today.

Eoin Morgan: Exact same. The trend of the tournament has been to bat first. Although Edgbaston has been a magnificent ground. The last time we played here against India, we saw high scores of 340 and them almost chasing it down. Not really bothered as before the World Cup we preferred to chase. I think whoever plays the best cricket will go through. It has actually helped us throughout the group stages. The opportunity coming into the World Cup, the highs and lows of the group stages and particularly the last two games, we have gone from strength to strength as a side. We played two semifinalists and came off with wins which obviously gives us confidence going into this game. We have got the same team.

14.35 IST: Playing XIs:

Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch (C), Steven Smith, Peter Handscomb, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Alex Carey (WK), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon

England: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (C), Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (WK), Chris Woakes, Liam Plunkett, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood

14.32 IST: TOSS -- Aaron Finch has won the toss and Australia will bat first at Edgbaston

14.10 IST: Will there will be such drama today in Birmingham? Australia are again there but a repeat would come at the cost of the hosts this time around.

13.58 IST: Looks a batting paradise in Birmingham. Flat track and loads of runs at offer.

13.55 IST: Just to remind you all (yes, we know it's painful), the winner of the second semifinal of the 2019 World Cup will take on New Zealand in the final on July 14. 

13.40 IST: The English players have arrived at the ground ahead of their mega semi-final clash against the Aussies. Can they overcome the hurdle to reach the final?

13.20 IST: Weather Update: It is going to be a cloudy day overall with chances of a thunderstorm around 6 PM in the evening in Birmingham. A highest of 22 degrees Celcius and a lowest of 14 is expected.

13.10 IST: Australia and England putting their final touches to the preparation ahead of their crunch semi-final at Edgbaston. Australia have defeated England during the league stages. Can they do the double? Or will England finally reach a World Cup final after 27 years?





13.00 IST: Chris Woakes opens up on his World Cup dreams and is pragmatic ahead of England's World Cup semi-final against arch-rivals Australia.



Brief preview: They came into the tournament as favourites, but England’s poor show in the middle of the group stages saw them almost being ousted from the 2019 World Cup. But the hosts got their act right and won their last two games against India and New Zealand to qualify for the semi-finals of the showpiece event. And now, they are set to take on arch-rivals Australia at the Edgbaston Cricket Ground on Thursday. [Read full preview here]