ICC World Cup 2019: Will it be 'home, sweet home' for England?

When former England batting star Kevin Pietersen puts out a tweet comparing the current England side with the invincible Aussies of the late nineties and the early part of the millennium just ahead of the World Cup, you know that Eoin Morgan’s men have to be taken seriously. “This England ODI side is like that great Aussie side ... if (Matthew) Hayden didn’t get you, then (Ricky) Ponting would & if they missed out, (Adam) Gilchrist would.
ICC WORLD CUP 2019: Full Schedule
This England team, the same, (Jason) Roy, (Jonny) Bairstow, (Jos) Buttler etc ...SOOOOO good!” the 38-year old had tweeted.
Fans concur. “England have a perfect team for these conditions. If they were a rock band; they’re the Beatles — the best English ODI team of all time!,” says Gautam, a Manchester resident. “The Cup is coming home! I hate the fact that they lost to the Aussies in the warm-ups, but they look good,” says John, while enjoying his morning cup of coffee in Worcester.
For the average English cricket supporter, expecting their team to win its maiden 50-over World Cup is a refreshing change. For years, he/she has been left rooting for their country in vain when it comes to the World Cup. Like their football stars, who sizzle in the EPL, but falter on the sport’s global stage, England’s cricket team too gives its fans plenty of pain every four years.
Though the one-day game was invented here, England, unlike other countries, failed to master the art of limited overs cricket for a long time. Who can forget how their openers — Geoff Boycott (57 from 103) and Mike Brearley (64 off 130 balls) crawled their way to a 129-run stand, using almost half the overs while chasing West Indies’ 286 in the 1979 Prudential Cup final!

Till the 1992 edition, though, England made the final thrice, and the semis twice — which earned them the tag of the eternal bridesmaids. In 1987, they arguably pulled off the upset of the tournament, as they humbled hosts India in the semi-final at the Wankhede in Mumbai. The team in 1992 was perhaps the best they’ve fielded in a World Cup — Graham Gooch as opener, a decent middle-order batsman in Neil Fairbrother, and a quality all-rounder in Chris Lewis.
Since ’92, though, they’ve been awful. In fact, so pathetic were they in one-day cricket, that before they took on India at home in a seven-match series in 2007, legendary all-rounder Ian Botham quipped sarcastically: “Even the Eskimos would beat us in one-day cricket.”
However, the introduction of Trevor Bayliss who had coached various T20 teams, including the Kolkata Knight Riders, as their coach after another disastrous World Cup outing in 2015 Down Under, changed everything. Gradually, England realised what ODI cricket was all about. To start with, they didn’t look down upon the IPL. Instead, they allowed their cricketers to make the most of the world-class T20 league, both in terms of financial gains and polishing their skills.
A foremost requirement for England’s one-day cricket to go for a complete ‘makeover’ was to introduce a healthy injection of ‘attack’ rather than ‘defence’ while batting. It meant preferring aggressive batsmen, over reliable, but dour ones. To their luck, and perhaps credit, they’ve found an incredible pair in Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow, who can tear apart any new ball attack with ease and thus help them make the most of the Powerplay overs. In Joe Root, they’ve a class act who can be rated among the best across formats. He’s consistent and allows others to bat around him.
Eoin Morgan is perhaps the best ODI skipper they’ve ever had. He has the ability to stay calm under pressure. Thankfully for them, he recovered just in time before their first game against South Africa after a minor fracture on his finger. Their biggest trump card, though, is undoubtedly Jos Buttler — the most dangerous batsman in world cricket. A floater, he can destroy bowlers without mercy — as he has shown twice while churning out explosive hundreds against the West Indies and Pakistan this year. Buttler has the gift of delivering superhuman performances which decide the fate of a game.
The decision to include Jofra Archer, the most exciting young all-rounder in world cricket, will add more muscle to England. With Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Moeen Ali and Liam Plunkett, the top wicket-taker in ODIs in the past couple of years, too in the mix, England now possess a bevy of top-class all-rounders in their arsenal. A slight worry could be discontent in the team surrounding Archer’s last-minute inclusion.
Another sensible choice would’ve been Sam Curran — the young pacer creates an awkward angle with his left-arm pace, and can be skiddy off the pitch. However, they can expect good things from Tom Curran and Mark Wood, who are both sharp and can swing the ball well. The spin department is handled by the experienced duo of Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid. Few would forget the bewildered look on India skipper Virat Kohli’s face as a sharply-spinning Rashid delivery crashed into his off stump in the third match of the India-England ODI series last year. Rashid is the highest wicket taker in ODIs since the last World Cup. He also has struck 10 First Class hundreds. Does that make him the best No. 11 going around?
The good thing for them is England seem to be enjoying the tag of the favourites, rather than taking pressure because of it. “It’s a huge compliment (to us). Pressure is actually a huge opportunity. I would rather we go in as favourites, than not even being considered contenders,” said Morgan after his team’s warm-up game against Afghanistan on Monday.
The only thing which can pull this team back is the absence of Alex Hales, a match-winning opening batsman who lost his place after he was caught taking a recreational drug — his second such offence. The fact that they beat Pakistan convincingly in a five-game series at home must give the hosts even more confidence going into the World Cup. They have the ammunition. If they can keep their key players fit through the long campaign, maintain their form and hold their nerve, the hosts may just make this summer the best in their ODI history.