Thoughts on the T20 World Cup
Although not intuitively a white ball fan, I have been avidly watching the T20 World Cup.
I am proud of the well-oiled winning machine that the England team is.
They and Pakistan have dominated the early stages and are undefeated.
Much credit must go to captain Eoin Morgan.
The Middlesex man did not play in the successful county era of Andrew Strauss who, as overall director of English cricket, prioritised white ball cricket.
England won the T20 World Cup eight years ago in the Caribbean and the World Cup in that unforgettable final against New Zealand.
The current team’s success is all the more remarkable as its been achieved without Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer.
Morgan epitomises the theory outlined in yesterday’s Rust that you do not necessarily need a coach if you have a strong skipper.
Morgan certainly is, even though the 40 runs he scored marked a return to form as – like another Middlesex man Mike Brearley – he will never be selected for his batsmanship alone.
Morgan’s captaincy was never more astute than in yesterday’s victory over Sri Lanka.
Yesterday, put in to bat in conditions of severe dew, England stumbled at first to 35-3 but rallied with a superb century from Jos Buttler.
His ferocious striking of a ball reminds me of John Jameson, Colin Milburn and Wayne Larkins and is executed with seemingly no back lift.
163 was barely a defensible total and Sri Lanka looked set to win.
Morgan set a shrewd field and victory was achieved by 26 runs.
Words of warning though. We have seen in football and rugby World Cups that the team that dominated the early stages is often not the overall winner and, secondly, the dew in day/night semi finals and the final will be crucial.
