Sunil Gavaskar's: England vs New Zealand could be the game of the tournament
Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar hailed England's approach, saying in his column that Eoin Morgan's team have played incredible cricket in the game's shorter formats for the past six years. Gavaskar wrote: “Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow, Liam Livingstone can hit the ball for miles and when he sings, Captain Morgan makes the stands in the stands wish they had helmets too. Morgan the batsman hasn't really been needed by England before as Morgan the captain has shown why he's one of the best in the business. His line-up of bowlers and his placement on the field ensured that the opposing batter did not escape. "
The first semi-final of the ICC Men's Twenty20 Cup will be played between the finalists of the ICC 50 overs World Cup 2019. New Zealand lost that game but won the hearts of cricket lovers around the world with the way they accepted that defeat.
They then made up for this defeat by winning the first World Championship of Test Cricket and now giving themselves the chance to include the T20 trophy in their cabinet. It won't be easy as they play against an English team that have played incredible white ball cricket for the past half a dozen years.
After their humiliating elimination in the group stage of the 2015 ICC World Cup in Australia, England changed their approach to white ball cricket dramatically and today that approach is paying off with the way they win from impossible situations.
England was lucky to have New Zealand on a tour of England under Brendon McCullum immediately after this disastrous World Cup. McCullum was the one whose innings of 158 innings in the IPL's first match allowed the tournament to take off vertically, and he's still flying in the stratosphere.
Whatever the kiwifruit in this white ball series did in England, England did better. They adapted to the Kiwi approach ball by ball, move by move, and found a template that would lead them to their first 50 overs World Cup victory in the next edition after that inglorious elimination in Australia.
While the throw as New Zealand will be key, and whether to hit or bow first, Kane Williamson is hoping fast bowlers Trent Boult and Tim Southee can strike in the first six overs to reveal an English median order that has hardly been tested in the tournament so far. Roy and Jos Buttler scored the majority of the runs for the 2016 finalists, while Morgan, Liam Livingstone and Moeen Ali only had to fill in with cameos.
“We have played against each other several times. We had some really good games in really good series. The development of the English team and especially the white ball teams was significant over several years. As a collective, they play really good cricket. We know it's a nice challenge and we're looking forward to it, ”said New Zealand captain Williamson before the semi-finals of the T20 World Championship.