ICC World Cup 2019: England Cricket Team – Squad, Schedule, Where To Watch, Players to Watch

England Cricket team have announced a strong squad in a bid to put an end to their barren run in the ICC World Cup. This will be their best opportunity, playing in front of the home crowd to lift the coveted trophy when the tournament commences on May 30.

Since their ouster from the 2015 World Cup, England led by the Eoin Morgan have played a different brand of cricket. They have come out aggressive taking on the opposition and have looked invincible in this format of the game. As a result, they are currently at the top of the ICC ODI Rankings. In the last two years, England have won 34 of their 49 games while three of them produced no result. Moreover, the statistics drastically improves when England plays at home. They have lost only four games out of the 22 matches in since January 2017.

However, the onus will now be on the players to focus on what they have done in the past two years and continue doing that. Although there will be the pressure of delivering but this side have the pedigree to excel under pressure which makes them the top contender to win the trophy.

England will begin their World Cup campaign against South Africa at the Oval on May 30 in the tournament opener.

England’s 15-Member Squad:

Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

Probable XI: Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Tom Curran, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood

Schedule

May 30 (Thursday): England vs South Africa — The Oval – 3 p.m.

June 3 (Monday): England vs Pakistan – Trent Bridge – 3 p.m.

June 8 (Saturday): England vs Bangladesh – Cardiff – 3 p.m.

June 14 (Friday): England vs West Indies – Southampton – 3 p.m.

June 18 (Tuesday): England vs Afghanistan – Manchester – 3 p.m.

June 21 (Friday): England vs Sri Lanka – Headingley – 3 p.m.

June 25 (Tuesday): England vs Australia – Lords – 3 p.m.

June 30 (Sunday): England vs India – Birmingham – 3 p.m.

July 3 (Wednesday): England vs New Zealand – Durham – 3 p.m.

Where to Watch

Batsman to Watch

JONNY BAIRSTOW

Jonny Bairstow holds the key for England at the top-order. The wicket-keeper batsman has been in great form in the Indian Premier League for the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Bairstow has scored 445 runs from ten games at an average of over 50.

Bairstow will be keen to keep up the good work when he resumes his national commitments. The upcoming World Cup will be his debut tournament, and the stylish batsman will look to make it worth-remembering for him.

Bowler to Watch

CHRIS WOAKES

Although England bowlers have been outstanding as a unit, Chris Woakes has made rapid strides in the last two years. He has picked 38 wickets from 26 games in the previous two years and has led the bowling pack.

Besides, Woakes’ ability to contribute with the bat is what makes him stand out. He has scored at an average of over 40 in the last two years which will provide depth to England’s batting. Recently skipper Eoin Morgan called him an extremely important for their World Cup campaign and Woakes will be pumped up to repay the trust shown by the skipper.