Morgan hails England depth with batters 'willing to take the world on'

By Sports Desk June 19, 2022

Eoin Morgan feels England are in a much stronger position for the next Cricket World Cup than they were for the last, with a depth of batters "willing to take the world on".

Morgan has overseen a period of transformative change in limited-overs cricket since his appointment as England captain in 2014.

The 35-year-old guided England to a dramatic World Cup triumph over New Zealand in the 50-over format in 2019, three years after taking his side to the T20 World Cup final.

Another semi-final appearance came at the T20 World Cup in 2021, where England were defeated by New Zealand.

Australian Matthew Mott has taken over the role as England's white-ball coach, and his tenure has started well.

England blasted a world record ODI and List A benchmark with 498-4 in the first game against the Netherlands last Friday, before earning a six-wicket victory in the next outing on Sunday to take an unassailable 2-0 series lead.

Phil Salt scored his maiden ODI century in the first game and added 77 in the second, while Dawid Malan managed his maiden 50-over international hundred before producing an unbeaten 36.

That has signified the depth of England's batting ranks, with the likes of Ben Stokes, Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow with the Test side, and Morgan hailed the quality of batters the English system keeps providing.

"Yeah, I think the strength and depth grows deeper and deeper," he said when asked if England were in a stronger position for the 2023 World Cup in India than they were in 2019.

"We keep producing a lot of batsmen that are very aggressive, very talented and willing to take the world on.

"That is a huge compliment to the artillery that we already have. In a similar instance, India have a lot of batsmen they can call on and turn to at any time.

"But obviously the skill within that is picking the right side that makes a winning team."

Morgan, who has failed to score so far across the Netherlands series, also reserved praise for bowler Brydon Carse, who took 1-36 after coming in for just his fourth international appearance on Sunday.

"Delighted, the guys have played really well again today," he added.

"We impressed with the ball, it was great to see Brydon Carse come in, hit the series with plenty of pace, plenty of energy and offer something different.

"With the bat, up top the guys are showing what they do. Phil Salt again contributes in the fashion that he wants to, alongside Jason Roy in his 100th game, it was a pretty amazing start.

"We stood up to the task, managed to get some partnerships and get us over the line."

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