Harry Brook, Jos Buttler and Liam Livingstone were unable to offer tangible support to Duckett, who perished in the 48th over, before Jofra Archer’s unbeaten 21 off 10 balls took England past 350 against an Australia side missing first-choice pace attack Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.
This was Root close to his best, ticking along at around a run-a-ball without ever looking in trouble, while Duckett was a capable foil, thumping the last two balls in Glenn Maxwell’s first two overs for boundaries, the second clearing it.
Duckett’s innings, the best individual score at this event, included 17 fours and three sixes and helped England to 351 for eight off their 50 overs, beating New Zealand’s 347 for four against the USA in the 2004 edition.
Ben Duckett let his bat do the talking with a masterful 165 off 143 balls as England posted the highest Champions Trophy total ever in their tournament opener against Australia in Lahore.
It was built on a chanceless 158-run stand in 155 balls with Joe Root (68 off 78 deliveries) after England had slipped to 43 for two, lifting them to 200 for two after 30 overs and dreaming of a 400-plus total.
