World T20: Eoin Morgan backs fearless England to hit ground running

England take on the West Indies in their opening game

Eoin Morgan (GETTY IMAGES)

The English tend to treat former champions with a reverence accorded to gods. Except for one startling omission. The 2010 World Twenty20 champions have barely been given their due.

People who can recite off pat the World Cup-winning sides in football and rugby from 1966 and 2003 struggle to name more than two of the heroes of Bridgetown. There will not be endless“where are they now?” features down the years, if any at all.

This is perhaps born of an unknowingly dismissive attitude to T20 but in the corridors of power it was a historic triumph. It took boldness, innovation, intelligence and spirit, all of which will be needed as England start their campaign in the sixth World Twenty20 today with an uncomfortable tie against West Indies.

If the 2016 team can repeat it, a similar fate will assuredly not await them. There will be dancing in the streets. It is distinctly unlikely given the conditions they must confront and the breathtaking quality of some of the opponents. Nor should it be forgotten, however, that this England have made discernible improvements or that the 2010 team travelled to the Caribbean almost without prospects.

There is only one survivor from that team, Eoin Morgan, and without getting ahead of himself, the captain was clear yesterday that he has firm expectations of his fearless young team. “I think this feels different,” he said. “We’ve a different group of players.

“It’s a new energy. It’s an exciting time for English cricket, given the talent that we have in our group, and the attitude in taking the game to the opposition. It certainly feels different in that regard.

“We’re a developing side, a young side, and I think the more experience that we gain the smarter the cricket that we’ll play. I think in this tournament playing an aggressive brand of cricket and being brave, but playing smart cricket along the way, is part and parcel of it.”

That seemed to be a pretty unequivocal answer to those urging England to scale down what is perceived to be a gung-ho approach. Maybe they do need to think on their feet a little more without blithely blasting away but the fact they are adamant they will not die wondering is a good thing.

England lost two matches in South Africa last month, partly because their batsmen were a little naïve, but more worrying to some observers was the paucity of their bowling. The spin combination of Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali is hugely important.

“We learnt a lot particularly about our batting, which stuttered a bit in South Africa,” Morgan said. “But our bowlers came to the forefront, they bowled really well. India is a completely different challenge. Spinners can play a big role. Adil Rashid can be one of the players of the tournament but Moeen Ali often goes unmentioned and they complement each other really well.”

Today’s match is not do-or-die but it is precisely the sort that England would expect to win to have a realistic chance of progress. T20 is West Indies’ most accomplished suit these days – the only one in which they compete properly with their peers – but they still blow hot and cold.

Their preparations might have been smoother. Barely a fortnight ago, their captain Darren Sammy exchanged emails with the West Indies Cricket Board about the pay rates for the tournament, two of the squad withdrew and controversy surrounds others. But any team with Chris Gayle in it has a chance and there are plenty of the rest who hit the ball long and hard.

“With the players we have in the dressing room, we are confident,” said Sammy. “I look at our lower order and it always makes me smile. We’re all fired up. It was the same feeling when we went to Sri Lanka [in 2012] and won it. This is a format we’re really confident in.”

England have lost all three of their World Twenty20 matches against West Indies. They need to change that today to have a chance of being spoken of in the same breath as those unsung players from six years ago.