O’LOUGHLIN BEGS FURIOUS FANS TO BACK ROCKY CHAMPS
T20 specialist Malan given chance to prove he can turn it on ANYWHERE
DAWID MALAN is out to prove he deserves to be given a proper crack at international T20 cricket in the hope it will turn into something more.
Arriving in the Caribbean for the final series of a testing and so far winless tour, the lefthander is set to play his first England game since August last year when he was axed from the Test team.
And even though Malan is getting his chance here thanks to the departures of Jason Roy, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes (right) and Moeen Ali from the tour, he has a strong T20 record in his own right, averaging 50 from his five games so far.
“It’s tough to get into this team but every opportunity you get you need to make it count,” said Malan, who has played in the South Africa, Bangladesh and Pakistan T20 leagues this winter.
“From a personal point of view you always want to play more and when you do average SEAN O’LOUGHLIN has urged unhappy Wigan fans to stay loyal to the nervous champions.
The Warriors copped a barrage of abuse from supporters after crashing to a shock 18-16 defeat at promoted London Broncos.
It was their third defeat in 50 with a strike-rate of 150 you do, probably selfishly, think you should be playing a bit more.
“It just shows the strength and depth of this England white-ball squad, and it’s an exciting time to come back into the England fold.
“If I do get the chance to put the three lions on again it’s a chance to prove your point and show what you’re made of, that is always the way to go about it.”
Malan was particularly frustrated over the way he was dropped in the summer, with National Selector Ed
Smith describing him as being “better suited to overseas conditions”.
There was no call-up in Sri Lanka nor to the Windies in the longest format, but with the T20 series starting on the fastest and bounciest pitch in the region, the man who scored 140 in Perth during the 2017-18 Ashes may be well placed to four Super League games and only Huddersfield are keeping them off the bottom of the Super League table.
But skipper O’Loughlin said: “Fans have got to stick with us. We always get supported well, so hang in there and keep with us.
“We know that not winning makes it harder make an impact. “It’s never easy being dropped,” added Malan, who still harbours Ashes ambitions this summer. “And it’s obviously hard when you play your whole career in a country to be told you are suited somewhere else.
“It is disappointing to be tagged with that but the way Ed explained things to me made more sense than how it came across.
“For me it’s about proving a point and showing I can play all over the world. “It’s pretty simple: score big runs, play the right way and if there’s a spot available he could come knocking.” Cricket West Indies and Sky Sports are close to agreeing a deal that will see the final two T20 matches, outside the original deal, shown in the UK following a demand for more money.
Gayle, Pooran, Bravo, Hope (wk), Hetmyer, Nurse, Holder (c), Brathwaite, Bishoo, Thomas, Cottrell
Hales, Bairstow (wk), Root, Morgan (c), Malan, Billings, Denly, Jordan, Willey, T Curran, Rashid later on in the season but there is no panic.
“It’s frustration and disappointment, but we are not going to start kicking stones. We are not picking up wins which is disappointing but we will keep trying to get better and hopefully it will click.
“We do not feel we are a long way off. We know we have got the quality in our side. When we find form we’ll be a tough team to beat.”
Wigan had two points deducted on the eve of the season, for breaching the salary cap in 2017, meaning they are on zero points.
The club hope to get them reinstated when their appeal is heard by Sports Resolutions in Manchester today. But O’Loughlin (right) says the players need to concentrate on improving in time for Friday’s home clash with Huddersfield.
He added: “We are straight back into it.
“Everyone in general needs to get a bit better.”