While England is the present top-ranked ODI team, the English leg-spinner Adil Rashid has credited their limited-overs skipper Eoin Morgan for it.
Since the end of the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where England failed to reach to the quarter-final, the English ODI team has gradually grown up under Eoin Morgan’s captaincy and has developed themselves to the top-ranked ODI team.
Praising his limited-overs captain, Rashid said, “A huge amount of credit goes to him for how far we’ve come from the series against New Zealand in 2015 to where we are now, which is No. 1. As a captain, a leader and a person, he really gives confidence to players. He is a great leader for this bunch of lads and he has made this environment a nice one to be in, you want to play for him and you want to enjoy it on and off the pitch.”
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Rashid claimed that Morgan understands each and every player and doesn’t react too much even in their poor showcase.
Rashid said, “He knows you are going to have good days and bad days. One big positive I’ve found is there are no big emotions from him if you’re not bowling so well or things are not going great for the team. He doesn’t really show it in his face which is a big positive for the players.”
Rashid further added that Morgan has built up his confidence by allowing him to move freely and that is working positively for him.
The leg-spinner added, “For me, he has been a massive help. He has given me the confidence to go out there and try to get wickets and if you get smashed, no problem because we’ve got five other bowlers to keep it tight. It is my job to create chances and he has been a big positive for me.”
Not only Rashid, but the off-spinner Moeen Ali has also agreed on this view as he claimed that Morgan’s calmness gives them positivity and helps them to come out quickly from the bad situation.
The 31-year-old all-rounder Ali said on it, “The biggest thing as a spinner is, you get hit for a four and his body language doesn’t go, he doesn’t make you think you’re not bowling well. That’s massive for a spinner. I know Rash says the same thing. When you get hit for a couple of fours he’s still the same. He’s fine with everything and that’s a big characteristic.
“Throughout my cricket career, I’ve had that [captains who react emotionally and negatively]. From county cricket to international cricket, sometimes you do lose that and it knocks your confidence a bit as a spinner.”
“When times are tough Eoin is always calm and slows thing down just to make things clearer. If you feel like you’re struggling he never makes you feel like you are.
“I don’t think he even knows he does it. It’s great for us that we have a captain like that and it’s one of the reasons we are number one in the world. He’s right up there with the best captains I’ve played under.”
