By Matt Hardy
England’s 2019 Cricket World Cup winning captain Eoin Morgan has said today’s match against Sri Lanka can put head coach Matthew Mott and his men on a path of redemption having opened their campaign with three losses in four matches.
England opened their tournament in India with a loss to New Zealand before beating Bangladesh.
But they then suffered consecutive losses to Afghanistan and South Africa – by a record 229 runs – to leave them joint bottom of the table on points and only one off the bottom on net run rate.
England redemption
“Thursday’s clash in Bengaluru is not just a game,” Morgan told the International Cricket Council. “It’s a battle for redemption, a chance for England to prove that they can bounce back from adversity and reaffirm their status as one of the cricketing giants.
“Their primary task is to rejuvenate the team’s belief that they can still clinch the World Cup despite the gloomy start.
“One must not forget that England, at their best, possess the firepower to conquer any challenge. But how quickly they can put their recent woes behind them and rediscover their mojo remains the big question.
“When they face Sri Lanka, who are a talented yet unpredictable side, they will need to find that balance between resilience and aggression that made them world champions just a few years ago.
“Sri Lanka are a team that has had moments of brilliance and they will pose a substantial challenge.
“But it is England’s internal battles, both in terms of team confidence and selection decisions, that will define their destiny in this World Cup.”
Defending champions
England famously won the 2019 title on boundary count back following a superover against New Zealand at Lord’s and will need an equally miraculous set of circumstances to climb into the top four of the 10-team league and into the semi-finals.
“If there is one side that will fight from this position and could go on and win it, it is our team,” all-rounder Moeen Ali said.
“You do it by going one game at a time – we have done it before.
“There is no other choice than putting in a performance to win the game. We have to win every game to stay in this World Cup.”
