ICC T20 World Cup 2022: Nasser Hussain Reveals His England Starting XI For T20 World Cup

Nasser Hussain, a former England captain, has announced his starting lineup for the T20 World Cup in light of the impressive performance England put on against Pakistan on Sunday. 

Nasser Hussain, who is now a commentator for Sky Sports Cricket, has chosen the team he would face up against in Australia, starting with the hot-shot Harry Brook in the middle order. 

The 23-year-old Brook concluded with 238 runs in six innings at an average of 79.33 and a strike rate of 163.01, with a top of 81 not out of 35 balls in game three of England’s 4-3 T20I series victory against Pakistan. 

Nasser Hussain Concerned About England’s Death Over Bowling

Nasser Hussain had a selection conundrum when deciding whether to pair captain Jos Buttler with Phil Salt or Alex Hales at the top of the order and whether to round off the bowling lineup with Chris Jordan or Chris Woakes. 

“If you pick all your batters and have Moeen Ali or Liam Livingstone at No 7, you need your best bowlers irrespective of if they bat or not. 

“For me, England’s four best bowlers are Mark Wood – that’s a given with his pace and X factor – Adil Rashid with his variations and ability at the death, Reece Topley with the way he has come on this year, has the left-arm angle and takes wickets up front, and then I’d go Jordan. 

“You have to remember that in the last two T20 Worlds Cups, England have lost them through their death bowling. Ben Stokes in 2016 with Carlos Brathwaite’s four sixes and Jordan in 2021 against New Zealand, so it is an area of concern. England need to sort it out. 

“However, I feel Jordan this summer got it right, was getting back to his best. He has experience and has been a constant under Eoin Morgan and now Buttler’s captaincy. I am not concerned about the new-ball bowling as Wood and Topley have done very well there. 

“The other option is to leave a batter out – there are a lot of batters in there – and play Sam Curran. He is an exceptional all-round cricketer and gives you options bowling at the death. 

“It’s whether you go the Morgan template of the extra batter – some of the batters bowl in Stokes, Livingstone and Moeen – or you play the extra bowler because in Australia you feel that you need a safety blanket. 

“If Salt does not open, the other way you get him in the side is if he keeps wickets. For me, for England to win this World Cup, Buttler has to have a very good tournament with the bat. 

“When Morgan was leading, I thought his captaincy was more important than his batting and fielding. With Buttler, it is his batting, his batting, his batting and then his captaincy and wicketkeeping. 

“Whatever makes Buttler tick with his batting is most important. If Buttler keeps, I can’t get Salt in as Hales’ record in Australia in the Big Bash is exceptional and he is more experienced than Salt,” Nasser Hussain said.

As part of their preparation for the T20 World Cup, England travels to Australia for three T20 matches against the tournament’s hosts on October 9, 12, and 14, as well as a warm-up match against Pakistan on October 17. On October 22, Jos Buttler’s team will face Afghanistan in Perth. 

England Squad For T20 World Cup: Jos Buttler (captain), Moeen Ali, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Alex Hales, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

Travelling reserves: Liam Dawson, Richard Gleeson, Tymal Mills 

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