England may have reached the final of the 2002 NatWest triangular one-day series, narrowly losing out to India by two wickets with just three balls remaining, but their preparations for that tournament were hardly convincing.
It was 13 years ago today that they warmed up for the competition with a clash against Wales at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff.
It was expected to be a routine victory for the English, who were up against a side that included nine players from Glamorgan, as well as guest stars Jacques Kallis and Steffan Jones of Somerset. Only a week earlier, Glamorgan had been hit for a record 438-5 by Surrey in the C&G Trophy.
So, when Wales put England into bat, it was viewed as an ideal opportunity to put some runs on the board ahead of the upcoming meetings with India and Sri Lanka.
However, inside the first 14 overs, England found themselves reduced to 55-4. Stand-in captain Marcus Trescothick was the highest scorer of the top four, having contributed 38 runs from 31 deliveries - a knock that included six fours.
Ronnie Irani and Paul Collingwood then fell for 13 and 22 respectively, before Alec Stewart (39) and Andrew Flintoff (29) impressed with brief cameos in a seventh-wicket partnership that was worth 55 runs.
But, when they were both dismissed, the England tail folded like a deck of cards and they eventually limped to 189-9 from their 50 overs.
In reply, Wales had Robert Croft at the top of the order. The off-spin bowler, who had not played for England since the previous summer, had already claimed two wickets when he scored a quickfire 30 until he fell victim to the bowling of James Kirtley.
The hero, though, was Croft's fellow opener Steve James - a batsman with two Test appearances to his name.
His knock of 83 off 110 balls proved to be a match-winning impact, with Kallis alongside him unbeaten on just three when the winning runs were struck with some 57 balls remaining and eight wickets in hand.
It was a miserable afternoon for England and in particular Matthew Hoggard, who was hit for 24 runs in what was a 10-ball over due to the fact that he bowled four no-balls. From his seven overs, the Yorkshireman conceded 63 runs.
To date, it is a defeat that remains one of the most humiliating in the history of English cricket.
