Cast your mind back to September. England had just won the Ashes and there was a glorious feel-good atmosphere reverberating around the game as the team headed into a seven match one day series with the wounded Australians. What followed next was akin to lambs heading to the slaughter. England were out-played, out-thought and out-muscled to the tune of a 6-1 series defeat, with the solitary win coming in the last game.
England were a spent force and their one day cricket looked bland and lacking in ideas. The batting was one dimensional and seemed to get bogged down to easily. All too often, England would crawl to a pitiful 70 or so after the first 20 overs, leaving too much work to be done by the rest of the team. The bowling, though impressive in patches, was ordinary and showed an inability to cope with aggressive batsmen.
England, so often the latecomers to the one day party, were at rock bottom and the situation didn’t look too hopeful. But less than a year later, we enter into another one day series with the old enemy and we’re brimming with confidence. Hell, we’ve even got a one day World Cup title to our name. So what has changed? What inspired this remarkable turnaround?
Aggression
Many credit the success of batsman Eoin Morgan as core aspect of England’s progression as a one day side. Dublin-born Morgan, who made his debut last year, revolutionised the side with his unorthodox and highly attacking style of play. His 67 off just 34 balls against South Africa really caught the eye of the cricketing world and the explosive performances that followed made him one of the few English players to earn a lucrative Indian Premier League contract.
Since Morgan’s inclusion in the side, England have played a new brand of exciting, attacking cricket. Players like skipper Andrew Strauss and Paul Collingwood, who were previously thought to be incapable of producing big-hitting innings, have transformed their one day games with aggressive shot selection. Naturally hard-hitting players such as Kevin Pietersen and Luke Wright have been allowed to let their strokeplay reign supreme.
And new players have been brought in to help accelerate this process. Craig Kieswetter, a wicket keeper known around the domestic game for his ability to blaze away at the top of the order, has been fast-tracked into the England side and has made an excellent start to his international career, hitting a century in only his third game.
Twenty20
Despite being the nation that gave Twenty20 cricket to the world, England have traditionally struggled in the shortest format of the game. But the new all-guns-blazing England have rapidly altered their T20 fortunes also. Choosing a bold selection policy for the World Twenty20 tournament in the Caribbean back in May, England produced a string of hugely impressive performances, mixing aggressive batting with intelligent bowling.
With players like Kieswetter, Pietersen and Morgan all regularly scoring at an extremely healthy rate, the bowlers were able to come into their own. Tim Bresnan and Ryan Sidebottom, two players discarded by recent England selection policies, kept a lid on the opposition along with Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann. Though England’s game plan was evident, it was also highly effective and impossible to defend against.
England blazed their way into the final and held their nerve to turn out another highly efficient performance, taking the honours against Australia. It was a symbolic tournament win and England’s first major one day trophy. It showed that England had changed the way they approached limited overs cricket and that their bold new tactics were here to stay.
The future
So whilst England are involved in the current one day series with the Aussies, thoughts will surely be on the 50 over World Cup, scheduled for next February on the subcontinent. With the advent of Twenty20 cricket and the dwindling interest in the 50 over format, it could turn out to be England’s last chance of claiming a World Cup triumph. It is clear that planning has gone into England’s selection – the inclusion of a second spinner in Michael Yardy shows that England are prepping their team for the slow, spinning pitches that they will encounter next year.
And with players such as Pietersen and Collingwood hitting their peak, there remains a good chance that England could replicate their success of last month’s exploits in the Caribbean. However, the success they’ve had so far is one thing. Producing it consistently is the next challenge and England will need to show some self-belief should their new system occasionally fail to produce the goods.
Still, there’s much to be excited about and with young players like Kieswetter, Wright and Broad all certain to improve, English fans can look forward to a positive future. Gone are the days of slow scoring defeats and abject humiliations. England have a young and vibrant team that can achieve big things. Who knows? We could be celebrating another trophy in a years time.
(Blokely.com, 2010)
