ICC T20 World Cup 2024: Andre Russell Fires Massive Warning To Team India, Australia, And England Ahead Of The World Cup

35-year-old All-Rounder Andre Russell is going to play a key role for the West Indies when the ICC T20 World Cup takes place next year. With 6 months to go before the marquee event co-hosted by the USA and West Indies in June, Andre Russell has pledged that he will be looking like a UFC fighter when the tournament begins after his side defeated England by 3-2 in the recently concluded 5-match T20I series at home against England.

The Three Lions under the captaincy of Jos Buttler were on a month-long tour to the West Indies to play a 3-match ODI and 5-match T20I series. After a disappointing end to their 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup campaign in India, England were looking for some redemption and rhythm but they ended up producing highly inconsistent performances.

It is an alarming sign for Jos Buttler’s side which will enter the T20 World Cup as the reigning champions. At the moment, they are looking nowhere near the level of being able to defend the title they won at the Land Down Under in 2022 by beating Pakistan in the final by 5 wickets.

After losing the ODI series by 2-1, England’s form further dipped during the T20 series. The visitors after losing the first 2 matches, responded in style by winning the 3rd and 4th T20I, thanks to consecutive centuries from Phil Salt. However, in the series-deciding contest at the Brian Lara Stadium, the hosts exposed England and won the match by 4 wickets.

It was for the first time in many years that the West Indies did a double series win over any opponent on their home soil. And even though they missed out on qualifying for the ICC Cricket World Cup in October 2023 was an overall good year for them.

They won a series against the likes of South Africa, India, and now England. It will give them a lot of confidence ahead of a difficult tour to Australia next month where they will play 2 Test, 3 ODIs, and 3 T2oIs from January to February.

The 2012 and 2016 T20 World Cup winners will hope to have a successful tour as it will be key to their confidence, building up to the 2024 T20 WC edition which will feature 20 teams for the first time in the tournament’s history which first took place in 2007.

I’ll Be In Better Shape Claims Andre Russell

While speaking to TNT Sports after doing the double over England, Andre Russell stated that their series wins is only going to push him to become better and get in good shape before the 20-over WC at home. Andre Russell made a bold statement on his fitness as well, stating that he will be looking like a UFC fighter by June.

“I’ll be in better shape, to be honest: I’ll be looking like a UFC fighter. This series win means so much. It [makes me] want to push myself to the limit. have a lot of cricket to play and that’s good. When you’re playing cricket and in competition, your body is active and you’re not just sat at home waiting for the World Cup. We are definitely going to give some teams a good, good run for their money in the World Cup.”- said Andre Russell.

The All-rounder also had a message for the passionate West Indies fans who have been let down for a bit after the team failed to reach the CWC 2023. Andre Russell also claimed that despite having such a long career, he still feels the pressure of expectations and that he is working hard to remain fit and fresh for upcoming challenges.

“Fans won’t know that, but I still get the pressure and the backlash and all of that. It just makes me stronger. I love my Caribbean fans and I know they are passionate about the game, and when we’re messing up, they will be on our backs. I want to make sure that I do the necessary recoveries, drink a lot of coconut water and get my body right – massages, and all of that.”- Andre Russell concluded.

Meanwhile, West Indies will begin their tour to Australia with a 2-match test series, starting from January 17.