Two-time champions Australia are facing the danger of an early exit from 2017 Champions Trophy as they had to settle for a point for the second consecutive time after their Group A match against Bangladesh at Kennington Oval was washed out by rain on Monday.
On the other hand, despite failing to post a win after two matches, Bangladesh still have a chance to make the last-four stage of the tournament.
It was not the first time in the ongoing competition rain played spoilsport in a match involving Australia as Steve Smith's men faced the same fate when they took on New Zealand in their tournament opener on 2 June. However, Australia had a better chance of winning yesterday's game when compared to the previous tie as they were cruising towards a 183-run target at 83/1 in 16 overs when it started pouring down.
Knowing that they were well ahead of the D/L score, skipper Smith, who was batting on 22 with David Warner, kept showing a dead bat to Mashrafe Mortaza in the 16th over to make sure the innings raced to the 20-over-mark, which is the minimum cut-off to have a result in One Day Internationals with interruptions.
With New Zealand taking on hosts England in a crucial Group A meeting today, IBTimes Singapore finds out how a team can qualify for the knockout stage of the tournament.
Group A table
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | No-result | Net Run Rate | Points |
| England | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | +0.407 | 2 |
| Australia | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | - | 2 |
| Bangladesh | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -0.407 | 1 |
| New Zealand | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | 1 |
Top two teams at the end of the round robin group stage will qualify for the semi-final. With quite a few rain-affected games, Net Run Rate (NRR) is expected to play a crucial role if teams end up with the same number of points.
Bangladesh
Yet to Play: New Zealand on 9 June at Cardiff
After having lost their opener against England by eight wickets, Bangladesh's NRR has taken a big hit and is currently at -0.407. Mortaza's men were fortunate to have sealed a point from the game against Australia.
Scenario 1
Bangladesh need nothing less than a win in their final group game against New Zealand to stand a chance of reaching the semi-final. Then, if England manage to beat both New Zealand and Australia, the hosts will make the semi-final along with the Tigers.
Scenario 2
If Bangladesh beat New Zealand and England lose both their upcoming games (New Zealand and Australia), then the Tigers will tied on three points with the Black Caps and the NRR will come into play to decide the second place and Australia would have earned a semi-final spot as group winners.
Scenario 3
If Bangladesh beat New Zealand and England lose to New Zealand but manage to defeat Australia, then Mashrafe's men and Williamson's men will be tied on three points each. NRR will then be considered to decide the second semi-finalist. In this case, England will top the group.
Australia
Yet ok play: England on 10 June in Birmingham
The equation, as skipper Steve Smith opined, is simple for Australia. If they beat England in the final game, they will qualify for the semi-final, regardless of the results of other matches in the group. The Men in Yellow will be hoping for the rain to stay away in what will be a virtual quarter-final in Birmingham.
England
Playing New Zealand at 6 June in Cardiff; Yet to play: Australia on 10 June in Birmingham
England have to win either of the two matches to make the semi-final. If they lose both, their chances of qualifying will suffer a huge blow.
Eoin Morgan's men though will not mind sharig points in both their matches, as they will still have four points, which is enough to make the progress from the group stages.
New Zealand
Playing England on 6 June in Cardiff, Yet to play: Bangladesh on 9 June in Cardiff
New Zealand, after being on the receiving end of their rain-affected game against Australia on 2 June, can sail into the semi-final if they manage a win in their next two matches.
In case of a loss against England and a win against Bangladesh, then they would have to wait for the result of the England-Australia game as win for Smith's men will knock the Black Caps out of the tournament.
In case of win against England and a loss against Bangladesh, New Zealand qualification chances will depend on the NRR as they will tied on points with Mortaza's men.
