T20 World Cup: Failure not an option for England after 50-over disaster, but reigning champions look strong | Cricket News

As the World Cup title defense goes, it couldn’t really have gone worse.

England’s 50-point defeat in India last fall was a match for France’s defense at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, when the Blues were knocked out in the first round without scoring a goal.

The England cricket team’s 2023 World Cup has been full of goals – own goals. It was as if they were constantly throwing balls into their own net in a perverse and unconscious act of self-sabotage.

Selection confusion reigned ahead of the competition with Jason Roy in the team then out and Harry Brook out then in.

Mind-blowing decisions were made at the event. The call to bowl first against South Africa in sweltering Mumbai heat still makes one shudder when one thinks about it.

There was also the saga of all-rounder David Willey not being given a new central contract despite being in the XI and one of the few performing players.

Mistake after mistake and defeat after defeat.

Six defeats in their first seven matches ended England’s tournament run at the group stage and they needed to win their final two matches just to avoid the ignominy of missing out on the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan. It was ultimately little consolation.

Not all missteps should be directly blamed on coach Matthew Mott and captain Jos Buttler and Australia’s T20 World Cup victory in 2022 meant the duo had credit in the bank.

But if England endure another poor global tournament, this time in the West Indies in the T20 World Cup – their first match is against Scotland in Barbados on Tuesday from 3.30pm in the UK – then it is difficult to see Mott and Buttler keep their jobs.

With the game resources they have, failure – which probably amounts to nothing less than a semi-final – is not an option.

In a summer where decisions will be made about the direction of the country (the date July 4 rings a bell…), Mott and Buttler need a strong campaign.

There is every reason to believe that they will benefit after a reasonable build-up in their local constituency with two T20 warm-up victories against Pakistan, the second of them in hard-hitting style.

A powerful hitter and an Archer in great shape

This wasn’t always the case, mind you.

After two defeats in the first three matches of the four-match series against Pakistan and the final match at the Kia Oval threatened due to a sudden deluge, the wisdom of bringing the IPL players back to watch the rain was questioned.

In the end, everything went well. The precipitation has passed. Mark Wood played fast. Adil Rashid played magnificently. Buttler and Phil Salt pushed the limits. England won at a gallop in the capital.

During this match and the second T20 at Edgbaston, every key player had runs on the board or overs under their belt.

This accumulation looks different from 2023. Better. More smooth. Calmer. While T20 cricket is often a vehicle for chaos, England approach this World Cup with a sense of calm, knowing who they will play against and how they will play.

The top seven are chosen: Buttler – who is arguably the best white ball hitter in the world – Salt, Will Jacks, Jonny Bairstow, a leaner Harry BrookMoeen Ali and Liam Livingstone, with the first four on this list fresh off an all-star turn or more in the IPL.

Buttler ate two tonnes. Bairstow and Jacks one each. Salt scored over 400 runs and four fifties for Kolkata Knight Riders. Spare hitter Ben Duckett will only infiltrate this group in case of injury or if England want another left-hander at any time, besides Moeen.

Livingstone, Rashid and Moeen will provide spin bowling, while the seam attack will be bolstered by the fit-again Jofra Archer. It makes such a difference, brings a new dimension. Rhythm, presence, variations, death bowling. The whole shebang.

England have the option of partnering him with compatriot Wood in the same XI, a tempting prospect, but former captain Eoin Morgan said – admittedly before Wood’s fiery spell at the Kia Oval last Thursday – that he would not would not follow this path against Scotland in Bridgetown. Tuesday.

He chose Reece Topley to join Barbados-born couple Archer and Chris Jordan due to Topley’s extra size.

Jordan is also worth mentioning.

This writer, foolishly, didn’t even consider him as an option for the World Cup after being omitted from the T20 tour of the West Indies in December, but the 35-year-old is back now, providing hands in the bucket and amazing athleticism in the deep and we are deadly bowlers.

Jordan, who likely saw a place in the team open up following the untimely stress fracture to fellow Surrey player Jamie Overton’s back, also adds some lower-order striking. With him and Archer in the lineup, England’s batting is deeper than a skinflint’s pockets.

Add to this England’s recent experience of Caribbean conditions on the pre-Christmas tour, an experience in which Salt cemented his place over successive centuries; the presence of former West Indies captain Kieron Pollard on the coaching staff; and the fact that their initial group, with the exception of Australia, could have been tougher and confidence should be high.

How big will the Stokes miss be for England?

So what could go wrong?

Well, we need to see how England respond if they suffer an early stutter – they were horrendous in India last year – and how they deal with potentially heavy surfaces.

Ben Stokes is a master at assessing a situation and knows how to successfully pursue chases in tricky situations, often on tricky terrain.

You only have to go back to the 2019 50-over World Cup final at Lord’s and the 2022 T20 World Cup final at the MCG to see this. He also helped England to a stormy victory over Sri Lanka in the opening rounds in Australia two years ago, when elimination posed a real danger.

But Stokes is not there this time as he is focused on returning to his all-rounder status after knee surgery. The Test captain could be a monumental failure if the matches become close.

Archer, Wood and Topley also don’t have stellar injury records and one of their potential replacements, Sam Curran, is nowhere near the form he was in two years ago when he was named player of the T20 World Cup and player of the T20 World Cup. Matched in the final against Pakistan after scoring 3-12 from four overs.

However, overall, England’s strengths appear to outweigh its weaknesses.

Even in a tournament as volatile as the T20 World Cup, which tends not to follow rankings and recent form like the 50-over World Cup does, Buttler’s team should be considered one of favorites, alongside India and Australia, the eternal winner of the tournament. .

Success is achievable. And for Buttler and Mott, failure is not an option.

England begin their T20 World Cup title defense against Scotland in Barbados on Tuesday (3:30 p.m. first ball) with Ireland taking on India in New York on Wednesday (also 3:30 p.m.).

Watch every match from the Men’s T20 World Cup live on Sky Sports from now until June 29. Free streaming contract with NOW.

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