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ICC World Cup 2019, England SWOT analysis - Eoin Morgan & Co chase maiden title
ICC World Cup 2019: Beaming with confidence after their recent thrashing of Pakistan in the five-match ODI series, the Eoin Morgan-led side will begin their 2019 campaign in the tournament opener against South Africa on May 30.
England, for the first time, will go into a World Cup as favourites to win the trophy. After crashing out in the group stage level in the 2015 edition, England seemed to have rejuvenated in a manner no other team could manage in four years. The extent of Englands dominance in the limited-overs format can be judged by the fact they have not lost a bilateral series in the last two years and their batting numbers are the best in the world in that period.
Beaming with confidence after their recent thrashing of Pakistan in the five-match ODI series, the Eoin Morgan-led side will begin their 2019 campaign in the tournament opener against South Africa on May 30.
STRENGTHS
Strong Batting: Post World Cup 2015, we have three English batsmen in the top 6 when it comes to total run scored. Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler are averaging above 50 since the tournament while on the other hand players like Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan and Jason Roy are averaging in the 40s. They have all bases covered in terms of batting. England, as a team, have scored 23198 runs since the last World Cup which is the most by any team; They average 41.64 - which is the 2nd best.
All-rounders: Ben Stokes and Moeen Ali have proven themselves as some of the best all-rounders in ODIs. To support them, England have Tom Curran, Chris Woakes and David Willey who have all performed at some point in the series against Pakistan.
WEAKNESSES
Secondary Spinner: Adil Rashid has been in tremendous form over the last couple of years (he took England’s first 5-for in 2019). But to assist him, there is no quality secondary spinner. Moeen Ali has had decent numbers in the last couple of years, Joe Denly is at best a part-timer.
Expensive fast bowlers: England seamers are picking up wickets regularly but at an expense. Since 2018, England seamers have picked up 141 wickets which is the 2nd most by a team but also conceded 5283 runs which is the most conceded by a team. Also, the economy of 6.02 for England is the worst by any team’s seamers since 2018.
OPPORTUNITIES
Home advantage: Team England have been runners-up thrice in the World Cup and have reached the semi-finals twice. Given that they have won the most matches post World Cup 2015 and the fact that the World Cup is at home this is a huge opportunity to break their World Cup jinx.
New players: If we consider England’s squad of World Cup 2015, the current squad have only 5 players who had played in that tournament. Thus, for the players who will be playing their first World Cup, it is a huge opportunity.
THREATS
Too many cooks spoil the broth: All the 15 players are in tremendous form. Also, in the recently concluded series against Pakistan, all of the players got a chance to play and no one disappointed. Given this situation, it will be a tough call for the England team to pick the correct XI in the upcoming World Cup matches.
Ground/Weather Conditions: England in the last 2-3 years have batted on flat tracks at home, which has actually helped the current players to perform exceedingly well. However we saw in the Champions Trophy (especially the semi-final) that a pitch which doesn’t quite suit their strength can be deleterious to their chances.
(With agency inputs)
