Plucky Liam gives his all for the team
LIAM PLUNKETT admits he put his body on the line to help England seal a 3-0 series whitewash against West Indies – because he feared losing his place in the one-day team.
The fast bowler was struck down with a stomach bug before Thursday’s final ODI in Barbados.
But Plunkett, worried about giving someone else a chance ahead of this summer’s Champions Trophy, insisted on playing and took 3-27 to help England sweep the series with a massive 186-run win.
That meant he was the leading bowler in the series with 10 wickets at 9.90.
He said: “I’ve found that in my career, when I’ve slipped a little bit, people come in and take over.
“I was a bit rough for the two days before the game but there was no chance I would not play.
“If someone comes in and does well, that’s my place gone.
“I spent a day in bed – it was the only day off we had in Barbados and it didn’t work out great for me – but I wanted to play.
“I was a bit rough the morning of the game but I got some water down me and I was fine. When CHRIS STOCKS in Barbados the adrenaline got going with a couple of wickets, it wasn’t bad.” Plunkett (below) will earn his 50th one-day cap if, as expected, he plays against Ireland on May 5. That two-match series will start England’s build-up to the Champions Trophy, which they begin against Bangladesh at The Oval on June 1. If Plunkett could help England to win their first ever 50over title in world cricket it would be the highlight of his career. But every game is special for a man who has been in and out of the team since he made his one-day debut against Pakistan in Lahore in 2005. He said: “The Champions Trophy is huge but it doesn’t matter who we play. “For me, it’s another cap. My next cap is my 50th. It’s taken me 12 years to do that. I want to play every single game. “But I want to be at the Champions Trophy. “It is a competition that we think we can win.” Plunkett also wants to force his way back into England’s Test side this summer having won the last of his 13 caps against India at Lord’s in 2014. “I’m 31. I feel I’m at my best,” he said.