The middle order of England seems to be in very good health with three very different batsmen occupying the slots 3-5. The middle order batsmen in the World Cup are all set to be severely tested by spin bowling and England have batsmen who are capable of holding their own against the slower bowlers on turning pitches. Let us analyse each of them and what they bring to the table and the impact they are likely to have on the English performance.
Joe Root
He is a naturally gifted played capable of playing on any surface and excelling in any format of the game. He has a water tight technique along with a calm head and unflappable temperament that helps him shine in all situations. He can score quickly through conventional shots but has unorthodox shots like the reverse sweeps and paddles in his armoury as well. Root has played 13 T20I’s for England scoring 311 runs at an average of over 34 and a strike rate almost touching 130 runs per hundred balls. He is also a very deceptive off break bowler who is rarely called upon but provides the team with a breakthrough on most such occasions.
His maturity and calmness at the crease might just be the tonic that England needs to prosper amid all the big bashing batsmen that they have strewn all around their batting line up. He could be the gel that binds the innings together with sensible batting while the others can do all the violence and try to bash everything in orbit!
Impact Rating – 7.5/10
Eoin Morgan
Eoin Morgan is the English captain and an inventive and audacious striker of the cricket ball. Known for his sweeps and reverse sweeps he is adept at facing spinners and creating havoc in their line and lengths. He is also a very clean hitter straight down the ground against the quicker bowlers.
Known for his calming influence at the batting crease, he is seldom ruffled by all that is happening around him and is considered to be amongst the best finishers of the game by the English management. He has a very good record for England in the T20I’s playing 55 matches for almost 1300 runs with the strike rate in the 130’s but he has been in wretched form during the limited overs leg during the South African tour. England will hope that he can rediscover his form and magic in time before the World Twenty20 begins next month.
Impact Rating – 7/10
Jos Buttler
Jos Buttler brings to the table innovative and expansive batting, which is both brutal and full of flamboyance. He has two of the fastest ODI hundreds for England and he recently smashed a 73 ball ton against South Africa as England ramped up 399 runs at Bloemfontein. Buttler is a master of innovation and his fearless approach in the middle order has served him and English cricket well up until this point. Consistency is one feature that he needs to work on though, as after a manic hundred and a 48* off 28 balls in the first two ODI’s against South Africa, his form tapered as he made 0, 1, 0 in the last three matches.
Impact Rating – 8/10
This middle order is strong enough and can be extremely dangerous especially if they are given a good launching pad by the English opening batsmen.
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