Pune: England snapped their five-match losing streak at the World Cup on Wednesday, as a century by Ben Stokes set the tone for a 160-run victory over the Netherlands that kept his team's Champions Trophy qualification hopes alive.
The Netherlands got off to a sluggish start chasing 340 as England reduced them to 104/5 midway through the innings before they eventually folded for 179 in 37.2 overs.
Wesley Barresi (37), Sybrand Engelbrecht (33), skipper Scott Edwards (38) and Teja Nidamanuru (41 not out) all got starts but the Dutch were unable to keep the momentum going in the face of some superb spin bowling.
Adil Rashid claimed 3/54 while spin partner Moeen Ali bagged 3/42 with seamer David Willey chipping in with 2/19.
The win lifted England off the bottom to seventh in the 10-team standings with four points, above Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Dutch on net run rate. All teams now have a game remaining.
Stokes earlier hit an 84-ball 108 for his first World Cup ton while Dawid Malan (87) and Chris Woakes (51) smashed half-centuries as beleaguered England's batting clicked into gear again to get them to 339/9 in 50 overs at Pune's MCA Stadium.
"I'm more pleased for us to get a victory, to be honest," said man-of-the-match Stokes. "Tough World Cup and it's nice to get back on winning terms today.
"It was (a typical Pune pitch). It was a nice wicket to bat on. The only thing was just on back of a length a bit of tennis-ball bounce. I tried to take it deep as I possibly could and cash in at the end."
The outgoing champions, who are chasing a top-eight finish to secure a spot in the 2025 Champions Trophy in Pakistan, raced to 70/1 for their highest powerplay score in the event after Jos Buttler won the toss and opted to bat.
Malan did much of the early damage blasting 10 fours and two sixes and looked set for a big score before being run out due to a mix-up with Stokes, shortly after Joe Root (28) was bowled out in comical fashion attempting a reverse scoop.
The Dutch stemmed the flow of runs with wickets, removing Harry Brook and an out-of-form Buttler, but Stokes rode his luck after being dropped by Aryan Dutt on 41 and hit six fours and six sixes in a seventh-wicket stand of 129 with Woakes.
England added 124 in the last 10 overs to finish strongly.
"We were absolutely desperate for the win. Malan got us off to a bit of a flier. We hit a speed bump in the middle but, the partnership from Stokes and Woakes was fantastic," said Buttler.
"We needed someone to stand up and take charge and Stokes seemed to be the guy to do that. We're delighted to have him in the team and out there in that situation. Smart cricket between him and Woakes to get us to a good score."
Edwards said they had let England off the hook.
"It's obviously disappointing. We didn't start well with the ball and we let them get away from us," Edwards said. "I thought the bowlers did really well to drag it back and again they got away from us at the end to settle with just above par."
The Netherlands dropped to 10th place but are still in the hunt for a Champions Trophy spot and face unbeaten India next in Bengaluru, a match that Edwards said they were relishing.
"It's going to be an amazing atmosphere. The boys are looking forward to it," he said.
Brief scores: England 339/9 in 50 overs (Ben Stokes 108; Bas de Leede 3/74, Aryan Dutt 2/67) bt Netherlands 179 in 37.2 overs (Teja Nidamanuru 41 not out; Adil Rashid 3/54, Moeen Ali 3/42).
Player of the match: Ben Stokes
