Morgan: I blame the pitch, not batsmen
Eoin Morgan criticised the Lord’s pitch and called for better batting surfaces in the Champions Trophy after yesterday’s heavy defeat.
Morgan refused to blame his batsmen or their choice of shots. “What cost us was the first hour in the morning with a lot of live grass on the wicket,” he said. “South Africa bowled beautifully and they did not give us anything to hit, and if we did hit it we managed to nick it. We did not play too aggressively and a lot of our shots were defensive shots.”
Alex Hales edged a ball that nipped down the slope and Jos Buttler and Adil Rashid were out driving as Kagiso Rabada bowled a precise length and the ball swung.
“Jos’s was a half-volley, and Hales, on any other wicket we played on, he would have hit for four, but we managed to nick halfvolleys,” Morgan said. “It was not a one-day international wicket if I am honest. I would be disappointed if we did [play on a pitch like this in the Champions Trophy] because any side that bats first has the potential to lose the game and to lose a game on the toss in a major tournament is hard to take. It makes it one-sided, which I don’t think is good for anybody.”
Morgan is in tournament mode now and wants nothing to dent confidence, so blaming the pitch offers a way out after a hammering, but South Africa recognised that they were in with a sniff when they saw the conditions and won the toss. They knew England would play their shots.
“We knew conditions favoured the bowlers this morning and that is the way England bat at times,” said their coach, Russell Domingo. “If there is something in the wicket and you bang the ball in the right areas, you have a chance because they play expansive cricket.”
Another failure for Jason Roy puts pressure on his position in the team and Trevor Bayliss, the coach, hinted at a change when he said England would have “an interesting selection meeting” this week before the first Champions Trophy match on Thursday.
But Morgan was unequivocal in his support of Roy and no doubt has memories of the last World Cup, when England changed the batting order on the eve of the tournament, picking Gary Ballance to go in at three. It backfired and set the tone for the tournament, so a change appears unlikely and would go against Morgan’s consistent approach to selection.
As a streak player himself, he knows Roy needs backing. “Jason is the No 1 pick at the moment,” Morgan said. “He and Hales have been our one and two for quite a long time. They have had ups and downs but, ultimately, they have played in the fashion that we have wanted to play as a team and they have been very important to that.”
England are confident all three injured players who were left out for this match – Chris Woakes, Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali – will be fit for Thursday, while Liam Plunkett and Mark Wood were rested as a precaution. Stokes is likely to have another scan today on his left knee.
“Moeen has pulled up really well,” Morgan said. “Ben could have played today but it was another day off his feet. The two bowlers who missed out could have played but it would have meant they were fatigued again, so the fatigue from this morning and yesterday would have been prolonged until tomorrow and we didn’t want that going into Thursday.”