The T20 World Cup starts now for England.
That is the message from captain Harry Brook as his side begin their Super 8s campaign against Sri Lanka on Sunday (live on Sky Sports from 9.30am) after a scratchy opening round in which they lost to West Indies and were pushed hard by three Associate nations.
England needed a clutch last over from Sam Curran in their opening game to beat Nepal by four runs, while they looked in danger of a shock defeat to debutants Italy in their final group fixture – one which would likely have seen them eliminated – before rallying.
In between, they succumbed against West Indies and made heavy weather of beating Scotland, but the full focus now is on reaching the knockouts, with the match versus Sri Lanka in Pallekele followed by meetings with Pakistan at the same venue on Tuesday and then New Zealand in Colombo next Friday.
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Former England all-rounder Moeen Ali says the team have been a bit ‘tentative’ so far as he looks ahead to Sunday’s game against Sri Lanka
Assessing England so far, former all-rounder Moeen Ali told Sky Sports: “I feel they have been a bit tentative, with bat and ball, but sometimes it is difficult to get out of a group when you don’t know much about teams like Nepal and Italy.
“When you give those teams a sniff, that’s when they become dangerous. As player, you feel a bit of pressure then.
“But England are through now and there will be a bit of relief. I think they will be feeling much better now, more at ease.”
England looking to extend T20 success versus Sri Lanka
England swept Sri Lanka 3-0 during a pre-T20 World Cup series in Pallekele and are currently on an 11-match winning streak against their weekend opponents in the format – Sri Lanka last beat England in a T20 international at The Kia Oval in 2014.
However, after nearly being burned in the opening round, Brook is taking nothing as a given, especially a Sri Lanka side that thumped Australia by eight wickets last Monday as Pathum Nissanka slammed a 52-ball century featuring 10 fours and five sixes.
Nissanka then clubbed 62 from 41 balls in the defeat to Zimbabwe.
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Pathum Nissanka’s spectacular hundred off just 52 balls saw Sri Lanka beat Australia by eight wickets at the T20 World Cup
The England skipper said: “It was obviously a niggly start to the competition. We probably underestimated a few of the sides and they put up a really good fight. Thankfully we got through and we see it as new competition now. A fresh start.
“I have learnt you can’t take any team for granted. Sri Lanka are a strong side with a lot of confidence after a few very good wins.
“Some of their batters are batting really well and Nissanka is on a bit of a heater, so it would be ideal if we can get him out early. But if we play our best cricket there is no reason we can’t beat them.
Winning tight games shows the belief and unity that we have. We’ve managed to find ourselves in sticky situations and got out of them with some exceptional performances from lads lower down the order.
“We can take a lot of confidence having played here and experienced this surface and this ground. Hopefully we use that experience.
“I think we have been too careful at times. We can look to put teams under pressure, especially with the batting depth we have got.
“It’s about having confidence in the people behind you. We can be a bit braver in certain situations.”
Bethell unlikely to bowl for England – and will Buttler shine?
Speaking after England’s 24-run victory over Italy, Sky Sports’ Nick Knight said the move back to Sri Lanka – Brook’s side played all of their first-round matches in India, with two in Kolkata and two in Mumbai – would benefit the two-time T20 World Cup champions.
Jofra has so many variations but you don’t have to use them all the time. Against Nepal, I felt he was bowling so many slower balls. As a batter, you want that rather than him bowling fast at you. I think he is bowling too many variations – but he has it in him to take wickets when England really need them.
Knight said: “It is a godsend as I don’t think their attack suits Indian conditions. The spinners can come into it more now, get a bit of grip, and extend a bowling attack that relies so heavily on Adil Rashid and Jofra Archer.
“I know they will have to return to India for the semis and final if they get there but for now they could get some confidence.”
All-rounder Jacob Bethell took 4-11 with his left-arm spin as England won a low-scoring series finale against Sri Lanka earlier this month but has not bowled in the World Cup yet because of a cut finger and appears unlikely to turn his arm over on Sunday.
England’s Jacob Bethel is unlikely to bowl against Sri Lanka due to a cut finger
Batting-wise, England will hope Jos Buttler can rediscover his form with the opener making scores of 26, 21, three and thee at the World Cup so far. He has not hit an international fifty since September.
Moee added: “Jos might be feeling he is letting the team down.
“I said to him over the last couple of days ‘when you are at your best you play the situation’. I think he needs to go back to that a bit more and take the worry off his shoulders.”
Buttler has vowed not to rein himself in and Brook – who Moeen feels should come in higher than No 5 – wants his team to be aggressive, too. England’s tournament, as the skipper said, starts now – provided the forecast rain on Sunday does not prove terminal.
England’s T20 World Cup Super 8s fixtures
All times UK and Ireland; all games live on Sky Sports Cricket
- vs Sri Lanka (Pallekele) – Sunday February 22 (9.30am)
- vs Pakistan (Pallekele) – Tuesday February 24 (1.30pm)
- vs New Zealand (Colombo) – Friday February 27 (1.30pm)
Watch every game from the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup live on Sky Sports Cricket, including the competition final on Sunday March 8. Get Sky Sports or stream contract-free with NOW.
