ENG vs IND 2018: I am not a huge fan of bilateral series, says Eoin Morgan

Morgan wants less bilateral ODI games to take place.

Eoin Morgan (Getty)

England limited-overs Captain, Eoin Morgan has come out and expressed a universal sentiment. Most people would agree with Morgan here but this coming from a modern day cricketer himself is extremely significant. 

The bilateral ODI series is losing its sheen and hardly gives the audiences and players alike any sense of anticipation and excitement and this is when  England and India, the no.1 and no.2 ranked ODI side, are contesting a series that has now reached a decider for supremacy. Context is the most relevant word here and the bilateral ODI series lack it. There is a reason why people have a lot of time for the world events that happen once in a while despite being played in the same formats. 

With the ODI series now 1-1, Morgan was quoted saying, "I am not a huge fan of bilateral series, Having a game like this is crucial for us. I do prefer a tri-series. The context. Every game brings something different with significance on it."

Morgan knows that even if his team wins the series at Leeds, there are a number of areas they have to work on with the game's most marquee event less than a year away. When got asked whether this bears any resemblance to next year's World Cup final, he said, "No not at all, The world cup format has changed with the Round Robin, so you have a lot of games you have to turn up and do well on the day. This will be one of them. Given circumstances, conditions - Kuldeep might bowl really well - we just need to be in the frame of mind to play well."

Talking about Kuldeep Yadav, England and especially the likes of Joe Root seems to have got the measure of him but Morgan reiterated, "We started better against him(second ODI). And the more we face him the easier he will be to pick. But you still have to play him well. I thought Joe was quite significant in that - his rotation of strike, his calm head. I thought we did our basics right. It was much better."

With the series level 1-1, the third ODI starts on July 17 at Headingley. 

(Inputs from Cricbuzz)

 
 

By Kashish Chadha - 16 Jul, 2018

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