For a country that invented the game , it surprises everyone how the English team has always failed to have it’s name etched on the World Cup trophy. Such has been the story of the English Cricket Team governed by the England Cricket Board (ECB). The 2019 World Cup couldn’t possible have come at a better time for England with most of their players hitting their peak form at the right time. The home advantage in this edition of the World Cup certainly makes England the overwhelming favourites to lift the Cup in front of their home fans at some of the most scenic grounds in the cricketing world. The stakes have never been higher and England surely will have only themselves to blame , if they do no end up with the trophy at the end of the tournament.
Here we take a look into the English team and how well they are equipped for the tournament.
Eoin Morgan ( C ) , Jonny Bairstow ( Wk) , Joe Root , Jason Roy , Jos Buttler , Ben Stokes , Moeen Ali , Chris Woakes , Liam Plunkett , Adil Rashid , Mark Wood , Tom Curran , James Vince , Jofra Archer , Liam Dawson.
England have quite an explosive opening pair in the form of Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow , with both of them having career strike rates of over 100. These two will look to take the attack against the opposition bowlers in the first power play and the team will depend heavily on them in providing a solid start to proceedings. While Roy averages 40 when he opens the batting , equally impressive is Bairstow‘s average at the top which hovers around 47. Jason Roy has shown the world what he can do with his power hitting and on his day , he can take any bowler to the boundaries. Bairstow , himself is in a rich vein of form. He put together a string of impressive performances for his franchise , Sunrisers Hyderabad in the recently concluded IPL. He even went on to score his first century in the IPL. He will surely look to make the most of his purple patch and score a bulk of the runs at the top.
Coming in at number 3 , will be the ever-reliable Joe Root. The most impressive part of Joe Root‘s innings is his ability to pace his innings ; comes in initially , looks to settle himself in and then play his shots. Another big aspect of his batting is how he almost never looks for the big shots and always focuses on timing and precision , bearing an uncanny resemblance to Virat Kohli. Root can easily be touted as the best batsman in the England batting order. And he will also look to get a lot of runs under his belt in the tournament.
The middle order of England starts from the captain , Eoin Morgan walking out to bat. The most experienced player in the team , the left handed batsman has a range of shots which will come in handy in the middle overs. Against the sub-continent teams , Morgan is most likely to face the spinners , who he likes to dispatch playing the sweep and the reverse sweep effectively. Morgan also specialises in hitting the big shots when the need rises. Lately , the England skipper has also been in thick form.
In the middle overs , Morgan‘s most likely partner in crime will be the destructive Jos Buttler. Coming off yet another impressive season for Rajasthan Royals , Buttler is a man who will hit the ground running in the World Cup. No boundary is too long for him and he can dispatch any bowler for runs. Buttler is a man whom most opposition bowlers will like to get early in order to give their side any substantial chances at winning the match. Another option for the English middle order will be James Vince. It remains to be seen whether he walks into the English line up straight away after his impressive score against Australia in the recent warmup game that England played.
Next we move on to the all-rounders. And jeez , the depth in the all-rounders department is amazing. In limited overs cricket , every team wants players who can score runs and also bowl a few handy overs. And England has a lot of players to choose from in that regard. Ben Stokes will be the obvious name on the team sheet. Another explosive batsman , who has been a little out of from of late . His team would bank on him to come of age this WC, and lend requisite balance of touch and power in the batting line-up. The fact that he plays the short ball reasonably well is an added advantage, since many a bowler would want to hit the deck hard to bring long side boundaries into play.He also comes in handy with ball , breaking important partnerships and the English conditions will definitely suit him. He can also be used as a death bowling option.
Moeen Ali is another left handed batsman in the English line up and his spin will often come in handy when Morgan looks to mix things up in his bowling lineup. Moeen Ali can also build an innings along with playing explosive shots , when the need be. Definitely more than a handy batsman lower down the order. He has batted in almost all positions in the batting order , opened the innings , came in at 3 , stabled the innings and has also finished the innings with his big hitting. Also an option among the England all-rounders will be Liam Dawson. However he has played only 3 matches for the English team so far and might be used later on in the tournament with his leg soon coming in handy.
Chris Woakes is more of a bowling allrounder and he is in the team primarily because of his bowling. However , he is also a more than capable batsman lower down the order and has rescued England often when the team lands up in a spot of bother. England will be looking to open the bowling with Chris Woakes , who can swing the ball quite effectively and picks up wickets in the first power play.
Certainly the X-factor in the English bowling line up is Jofra Archer. We have all seen him completely destroy teams singlehandedly in the IPL. He bowls very fast , flirting with the 150kmph mark and also has a decent economy rate. His inclusion in the World Cup squad surprised many. However , he will be the bowler to watch out for in the tournament with his outswingers , his toe-crushing yorkers and the slower ball. Archer can be used at any stage of the innings whenever Morgan needs a wicket. Another advantage of playing Archer is that he can also bat. Some English fans are optimistic that Archer can fire them all the way to the trophy this year .
However the young speedster will be needing a lot of help from his other bowlers. The right-arn legspinner , Adil Rashid is the only proper spinner that England have in their ranks. Adil Rashid will also play an important role in ensuring England bowl well in the middle overs , dictating play and also taking wickets. Rashid‘s influence in the England bowling line up will only increase as the tournament progresses and the pitches start drying up a little. He has an uncanny knack of picking up big scalps, and his variations do prove to be a conundrum for the batters time and again, especially on dry pitches where it tends to turn more.
As for Liam Plunkett, he’s an experienced campaigner who has been around since 2006. He has come a long way, and has made a successful comeback into the international arena after the drubbing post his initial years. For someone who uses the short ball effectively, he has a sharp in-swinger that has bamboozled batsmen time and again.
Mark Wood has pace, raw pace. He’s that hit the bat hard type bowler who likes to give it all for his skipper. With some years of experience under his belt, Wood is likely to get a starting XI provided there are no injury concerns regarding him.
Tom Curran has actually been preferred to his younger brother Sam, in the race for a spot in the WC squad this edition. He has done significantly well off late, with recent exploits in the series vs Pakistan keeping him in the reckoning for a first XI berth. Tom is relatively naive in the international circuit, but has a big heart and takes up the role of providing breakthroughs in the middle overs, in tandem with one of the spinners. He has had his share of contributions with the willow as well, and England would like to utilize his services if given a go.
On a pragmatic note, it certainly looks a daunting task for other squads to outsmart this English bunch of cricketers. There’s a reason why they’re the number one ODI side in the world, and they’ve certainly bolstered their chances of creating history given the brand of cricket they tend to stick to. Here’s to the home side making amends to the reputation they’ve built and lifting the Cup for the very first time.
– Poulam Bhattacharya and Sayan Chakraborti
The Sport Catalogue 