Upon return to the squad in South Africa following an indifferent summer back home, opener Jason Roy talked about the "frightening" talent pipeline and depth available in England's white-ball set-up, posing a constant challenge to his spot.
But while aware of the performance pressure, Roy is also feeling mentally and physically refreshed leading into the limited-overs series versus the South Africans from Friday (November 27) after skipping the IPL 2020 in UAE for personal reasons.
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Having recharged his batteries, the explosive right-hander is optimistic of the road ahead, focusing on winning both the T20I and ODI series rather than being overly concerned of his place in the team.
"It's mad, the amount of batters is quite frightening (battling) for our top six or top seven," Roy said during a Zoom call from South Africa, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo. "It's a great position to be in. I'm not fussed who I open with, whether I open, or what dynamics they go with, but it's a good position leading into a World Cup."
"Sam Billings touched on it the other day, about it being one of the hardest sports teams to infiltrate. The amount of players out here - Tom Banton and Tom Helm sitting here as reserves … it's a beautiful position to be in, we are spoilt for choice," he added.
The slight uncertainty has come about since Roy managed just 49 runs across six innings against Ireland and Australia in the summer ODIs while a side strain forced him out of the T20Is played in-between. This is where the 30-year-old is backing his age and experience to come to the fore and ease past this phase of his career.
"Playing for places is quite a hard thing to do," Roy said. "You've got to concentrate as an individual on the next performance. If there are players on this tour who are like 'I need to play for my place' then that's not what we're here to do. We're here to win the series. Some players will be feeling the pressure but you've just got to go out there and express yourself in T20."
Head coach Chris Silverwood had earlier this week spoken to PA about the opening combination for the T20Is on the tour and hinted that Roy and Jos Buttler are set to retain their positions at the top. But Roy knows, with the level of competition around, any hiccup in South Africa could leave him vulnerable in the build-up to the next year's T20 World Cup.
"I would 100% be lying if I said you were not under pressure for your place," Roy said. "With the amount of talent that is around us, there is not one person, everyone is getting pushed to their limits. No one can rest on their laurels."
"It's one of those amazing squads. But I have got to do what I have got to do, right? I have got to get myself physically fit, mentally fit and then I've got to score some runs. It's as simple as that," he added.
