Could This Be The Worst Year Ever For England Cricket?

Cricket

BY NISAR KHAN

England’s Ashes woes culminated in January, as the Three Lions looked to rebuild and bounce back. However, with their World Cup failures now unfortunately becoming imminent, could this set up for the worst ever year in England cricket?

England have been embarrassed on numerous occasions already

The downspiral began with the problematic Ashes tour down under in Australia. England were brutally defeated by the savage Aussies, dismantling them throughout the test and ODI series. Following that, Kevin Pietersen’s controversial departure would diminish the already descending England cricket reputation. The showings in West Indies were not too good, either. 

As England lost to New Zealand, it seemed like they were off the pace again. Yes, you could argue that England were hard-done-by with the umpiring speculation and so on, but simply, it could be part of many more losses to come.

If England manage to qualify, they could go towards a big resurgence, but this could become such a bad year with the futures lying in wait. 

Jonathan Trott’s controversial leave during the tour also brought about a lot of speculation and has seemed to find its place in the growing stigma towards England cricket. 

With the Indians touring in the Summer, England will want to spare any more embarrassment, but can they do so? 

If they thought The Ashes shift-up was of big changes, losing on another downspiral that could last throughout the year may cause the biggest outrage in English cricketing history. Now that’s a stretch, but if you look at it, are they stable enough?

What also goes against the Three Lions is that other teams, such as West Indies and India are on some good form that may not make England look bad in the games, but rule them out of World Cup contention which brings damages of its own. 

England are in for a tough year if they can not regenerate quickly. This could lead to a huge downspiral in their reputation and support, and it may be sudden.

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Things To Look Out For In Twenty20 Cricket World Cup

Cricket

BY NISAR KHAN

With the Twenty20 Cricket World Cup now looming, anticipation is rising as debates spur on the probabilities of each team winning and so on. Here are a few things to look out for when Twenty20 cricket takes over Bangladesh.

It all starts on March 16 from Bangladesh, with warm-up matches in the days prior. 

Australia, England, India, Pakistan, South Africa, West Indies, New Zealand and Australia have directly qualified for the Super 10, while Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands, UAE and Zimbabwe will battle it out in the group stages.

We have a few things to look out for in this tournament, from Afridi to England, Clarke’s captaincy and many more.

Afridi Rumored To Play

Pakistan’s key man Shahid Afridi may play in the latter matches of the Twenty20 World Cup after picking up an injury, reports say. 

We’ve had a clear reminder of how important he is to Pakistan’s cricket, especially in his standout Asia Cup performance vs. India a few weeks ago.

The important thing here is that Shahid Afridi will be there for the games he usually thrives in, as the tournament comes to a climax, allowing him to put on one of his signature marquee performances.

Can England Bounce Back?

After The Ashes outing that was one of the most problematic in years, there may be light at the end of the tunnel for England, despite crumbling against the West Indies, there are glimpses of encouragement going forward.

England’s performance in the Bangladesh tournament will be a real indication of their resurgence, if it exists that is. 

Another possible setback on the hand of England is Joe Root, ruled out of the Twenty20 World Cup with injury. This could further hinder England’s chances.

It seems so sudden when looking at the downspiral of England from Champions Trophy final to Ashes demise. With it has came a shift-up in the England hierarchy. 

Michael Clarke Looking For Cup In Captaincy

Under his captaincy, Australia are bidding for some success in the tournament, and they are undoubtedly rolling in with some form from The Ashes.

Michael Clarke is a superb captain and can solidify a status like that with the cup win, leading his team into more success.

More Drama In India vs. Pakistan

India and Pakistan are poised to meet once again this time in the Twenty20 World Cup. If the Asia Cup encounter weeks prior to this is anything to come by, we’re in for a thriller.

These teams brought the best out of each other with Shahid Afridi deciding it from an extraordinary batting spell. 

Their rematch will be highly anticipated. 

West Indies On Hot Form Going In To Tournament

West Indies have been on a flyer as of late with their England games in the series. At one time they defeated England by 27 runs in Barbados, and showed they could go on to win.

Sometimes people find it easy to overlook them in major tournaments, but that action is hard to come by for the West Indies this time round.

The big hitters could be blasting their way to a trophy in Bangladesh.

Group Stage Upsets

Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong, Ireland, Nepal, Netherlands, UAE and Zimbabwe will compete in the group stage, to go onto face some of the top teams in the Super 10. 

Bangladesh and Zimbabwe are the easy favorites considering their cricketing history in comparison to others, but Netherlands and Ireland stand out as underdogs too.

However makes it through will be the underdog when facing a Super 10 team, but upsets could end up to stun them. 

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With time ticking down towards the opener, watch out for those key things above. Who will go onto be the victor this time round?

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How Will England Bounce Back From Meltdown in Australia?

Cricket

BY NISAR KHAN

While the New Year reigned in with the intention for a fresh start, it was merely a continued meltdown for England’s cricket team, as their problematic tour of Australia drew to a close. Some drastic team changes and a shadow of doubt was cast upon for the rest of the year. With the World Cup on the horizon, how can England bounce back?



England were demolished by Australia in their tour down under from November to February. IMAGE COURTESY: Telegraph.co.uk

Andy Flower would depart from his post as England cricket coach merely days following the tour, and it would be a start of more crumbles to come for the England side. 

“[It’s time] to rebuild with a new set of values and goals”, said the former coach, speaking in the press conference. Flower would also note that he would remain a part of the coaching structure in some form, but far from his recent post.

There is no doubt that Andy Flower’s time as coach was a successful one, winning three Ashes series, taking England to World #1, winning the Twenty20 World Cup and numerous test wins. However, the problems at Australia would outweigh that calling for change in the England cricketing hierarchy. 

Then came the controversial call, the end of Kevin Pietersen’s England career. It dominated the back pages as the England Cricket Board were questioned by the media and fans as to why the cricketer was sacked, having been an influential part of the squad for many years, and possibly many more had he not been dispatched. 

During an emergency meeting with the cricketers and coaches, Kevin Pietersen allegedly went on an “anti Andy Flower” rant (per the Telegraph). This was said to be “the final nail in his England career”, writes Nick Hoult.

We would eventually get answers as to why Kevin Pietersen was relieved of his duties. The board stated that it was the disagreements with captain Alistair Cook and an alleged lack of support that put it to an end. After some time, the ECB would succumb to the calls and release a rather unsatisfying statement:

“It has been a matter of great frustration that until now the England and Wales Cricket Board has been unable to respond to the unwarranted and unpleasant criticism of England players and the ECB itself, which has provided an unwelcome backdrop to the recent negotiations to release Kevin Pietersen from his central contract.

The England team needs to rebuild after the whitewash in Australia. To do that we must invest in our captain Alastair Cook and we must support him in creating a culture in which we can be confident he will have the full support of all players, with everyone pulling in the same direction and able to trust each other. It is for those reasons that we have decided to move on without Kevin Pietersen.”

From the statement provided, we had little to rest the burning questions, with Kevin Pietersen’s release still not really justified. In fact, it just made it a more precarious situation for the board.

Kevin Pietersen’s departure would only worsen the problems from Australia, with more criticism epitomizing towards the captain Alistair Cook and the board. England now have to improve their cricket along with public image, a tough task with the Twenty20 World Cup looming.

If England are taking measures like that to ‘rebuild’, they might as well go all out. A sufficient re-structure of England cricket will quieten the critics, while also keeping a clear image of the leadership needed going forward. 

But the ideal situation will see them model out new systems for their series with West Indies, to see any improvements. Despite that, it’s far from a mock up – any failure could further critics and damage England even more.

England really have their work cut out to disprove many-a-critic and encourage fans that they won’t crumble. Should any further meltdowns occur, there England will be pushed on the verge of a demise.

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