Morgan’s ODI side is a different kettle of fish
If India think that the One-day series will be easily won like the Test series was last month, then they could be in for a big surprise. This England one-day team is a far cry from the one that crashed out of the 2015 ICC World Cup at the qualifying stage itself. The way they have regrouped is absolutely fantastic and while credit must be given to Eoin Morgan, the skipper for this transformation, the New Zealanders led by Brendon McCullum also deserve more than honourable mention. The first one-day series that England played after that World Cup disaster was against the Kiwis under Brendon McCullum. Whether it was a conscious effort or whether they simply decided to copy the Kiwi approach, they succeeded to such an extent that they not only beat the Kiwis but in doing so chased down such big scores which in the earlier days would have been too much for them.
It was incredibly exciting stuff and Morgan encouraged his team to go for broke. Now not only are England winning games from impossible situations but in doing so, give entertainment that is simply beyond compare. Leave aside what happens in this series if England don’t win the Champions Trophy in June this year and the ICC World Cup in 2019, then it will mean something has seriously gone wrong somewhere.
If the pitches for the series are like what they were for the South Africa series last season, then India’s bowlers will be in for some serious thrashing like the Proteas gave them. However, if there is turn then it could be India who will dominate with the presence of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja in their ranks. As it was seen in the two warm-up games, India will be better off chasing than defending a total. The batting depth that India have gives it a better chance while chasing.
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