The interest in the upcoming ODI series between England and Pakistan will be at a complete high, thanks to Pakistan’s fine show in the fourth test at The Oval. After a resounding victory in the final test, Pakistan managed to level the series 2-2, and considering England’s dominance at home, it was a commendable feat. A massive hurdle remains ahead, as England’s ODI setup is full of rejuvenated individuals, who can demolish any unit in a game.
Skipper Eoin Morgan might not be in the best of form personally, but his leadership remains crisp and to the point. Against Sri Lanka, his side was dominant to the core as the visitors were crushed in the ODI series. With Pakistan’s ODI rank already in the shambles at the 9th spot, England head into the ODI series as the clear favorites. In his recent interaction, Morgan stated that he was quite confident despite his own poor form with the bat.
“The key phrase is pushing the side. Over the last 12-18 months we’ve seen the progression of everyone and the skill levels,” Morgan said in an interview with ESPN Cricinfo. “There’s a huge amount of belief. It’s almost as though there are no restrictions on anything we can do.”
Focusing on the long-term perspective in mind, particularly the 2019 World Cup at home, Morgan said, “Realistically, if we want to be favorites going into the Champions Trophy or the World Cup then we need to work our way up the rankings which means showing more consistency in all three facets. We want to be in the top three, three years before the World Cup. You still need to deliver in the tournament itself, but getting the results to move up the rankings builds confidence.”
When asked about his own form, the southpaw mentioned that his finger was slowly getting back in shape. “The finger doesn’t look great but it’s functioning better than it looks,” Morgan said. “I had my first hit two days ago and didn’t walk out of the net thinking I’m that far behind. That was quite nice because I actually broke it when I was finding a bit of form which was a bit of a pain. I’ve had breaks away before, then come into series without having scored many runs, so am very relaxed and feel quite refreshed.”