England captain Eoin Morgan said on Tuesday that he is ready to field himself t20 world cup If he can’t change his bad form. The 35-year-old left-handed batsman has scored just 82 runs in seven T20I innings for England this year.
And he scored only 133 runs in the recently concluded Indian Premier League at an average of 11.08, though he led Kolkata Knight Riders in last week’s final.
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At his best, Morgan is a dynamic ball-striker, with the ability to quickly increase the scoring rate indicated by a strike-rate of 138.25 in 107 Twenty20 Internationals.
But asked if he can let himself go, the middle-order batsman told an online news conference: “It’s always an option. I will not come in the way of the team winning the World Cup.”
Morgan, a former Ireland international who led England to a 50-over World Cup win two years ago, said: “I am short of runs but my captaincy has been very good.
“I’ve always managed to split the two and treat them as two separate challenges.
“Not being a bowler and being a bit older and not contributing that much to the field, I have liked the role of captain. You get two bites at the cherry (in) the game influencing it.”
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‘High-risk options’
After England’s warm-up loss to India on Monday, Morgan is set to lead the side against New Zealand on Wednesday ahead of their tournament opener against West Indies in Dubai on Saturday.
“As far as my batting is concerned, I wouldn’t have stood here if I hadn’t come out of every bad form I’ve ever had,” he said.
“The nature of T20 cricket and where I bat, it means I always have to take very high-risk options and I came up with it… if they don’t, I won’t.”
England were on the verge of victory in the most recent edition of the T20 World Cup five years ago, only to have Carlos Brathwaite hit four consecutive sixes in the last over of the final in Kolkata to lead West Indies to the title.
Morgan revealed on Tuesday that it took her “about six or seven months” to come to terms with what had happened, adding: “It was one of the most incredible sporting events in isolation you’ll ever see.
“It’s not something you can let running off your back. For a player to come and go for four consecutive sixes to win games for his team is an incredible feat in itself, that’s how I understand it.”
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Morgan has spent the past two years operating under strict bubble rules designed to combat the spread of the coronavirus.
Although buoyed by the presence of families of some players at tournaments in the United Arab Emirates and Oman, he questioned how long the current restrictions could remain in place.
“Yes, they are getting more liberal, but it is coming a long time before we are following all these,” he said.
“I don’t think they can last much longer because asking humans to do it and then doing well at a higher level is not sustainable.”
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