England v Australia: Eoin Morgan hails Kevin Pietersen influence

Eoin Morgan will be delighted to welcome Kevin Pietersen's expertise and wisdom back into England's one-day international team.

Morgan, standing in as captain in place of the rested Alastair Cook for the five-match series against Australia set to get under way at Headingley, may well deploy Pietersen in the opener's position in which he has fared so well.

Pietersen, returning to the 50-over format for the first time since January because of injuries, is an obvious contender to help fill the vacancy left at the top of the order by the absence of Cook and Ian Bell.

He batted at number three when he last featured in ODI cricket but previously signed off as an opener with back-to-back centuries against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates in early 2012.

Much has happened to Pietersen and England in the intervening time - including Cook and Bell's prolific partnership.

But with both rested, Pietersen's average of 58.85 in eight attempts against the new ball - albeit exclusively in sub-continent or Middle East conditions - presents a compelling case for him to return to that role, probably alongside Michael Carberry.

It will not be merely Pietersen's runs, but his presence as a senior player in a largely inexperienced squad, which Morgan will hold dear.

"Kev offers a hell of a lot as a senior player and as a batsman," he said.

"He leads by example. The confidence with which he goes about his business, people rub off on that - and that's crucial.

"When I came into the team, he was one of the most senior players - the guy you could turn to and ask difficult questions.

"He's fantastic to have in the squad and back in for the one-day series."

View the original article here

Eoin Morgan backs Michael Carberry to put horror England ODI debut behind him

Carberry became a figure of fun for the crowd as he dropped two catches in England's six-wicket defeat of Ireland in Dublin on Tuesday.

His luck did not change as he conceded 12 runs in bowling a single unimpressive over and then failed in his principle job, opening the batting, managing just 10.

But after the 32-year-old was selected on the back of some superb form for Hampshire, Morgan expects him to come good.

Morgan said: "With debuts you are on a hiding to nothing most of the time. More often than not they do not go right for you.

"Carbs is a very experienced cricketer. He will pick himself up, re-evaluate where he is at and we will encourage him to play with the freedom he does at Hampshire.

"We have very strong belief in him as an opening batsman."

Carberry - who played one Test match in 2010 - is one of a number of players to be given an opportunity this autumn as England rest several of their star names following their Ashes exertions.

Regular captain Alastair Cook, James Anderson, Ian Bell, Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann are all sitting out the late-season one-day internationals, which primarily consist of the five-match series against Australia starting on Friday.

Carberry, Boyd Rankin and Gary Ballance all made their debuts in the format against the Irish while other inexperienced players in James Taylor and Ben Stokes came back into the side.

Changes could be made as Kevin Pietersen, Jonathan Trott and Joe Root come back into contention for the first of the Australia matches at Headingley.

Morgan said: "We picked a team specifically for Tuesday and the conditions. We will see what we are going to do."

Edited by Michael Beattie

View the original article here

Eoin Morgan calls on Kevin Pietersen to lead by example during England's ODI series against Australia

With Alastair Cook, Ian Bell, James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann all rested after a successful Ashes campaign, Morgan will lead some unfamiliar faces into battle against the tourists.

Given the lack of experience in the England line-up, Morgan has urged Pietersen to lead the way.

"Kev offers a hell of a lot as a senior player and as a batsman," Morgan said. "As a senior player he leads by example with the confidence with which he goes about his business. People rub off on that and that's crucial.

"When I first came into the team, he was one of the more senior players and he was a guy you could turn to and ask difficult questions or have no hesitation in turning to him for a positive option.

"In that regard, I think he's fantastic to have in the squad and back in for the one-day series."

Morgan stopped short of guaranteeing Pietersen the chance to open the batting against Australia in the absence of Bell and Test captain Cook, with the 33-year-old Surrey batsman's firebrand style potentially better employed futher down the order.

"It's certainly an option,” Morgan said. “Kev's opened the batting for England before and done well. He also bats in the middle-order as a very explosive player. He's very versatile in that regard so we'll be looking at both options."

Morgan said that whoever was selected to open the batting would be "filling big shoes".

"Cooky and Belly have been very successful now for a couple of years and they've been a huge part of our success as a one-day team," said the Irishman, who hit a century against Ireland in Dublin on Tuesday.

"With the two new balls in one-day cricket it makes that role more difficult now, so it's an important role and one that we recognise needs filling."

Sussex bowler Chris Jordan could make his England debut on Friday and Morgan says working alongside budding debutants has been the highlight of his captaincy so far.

"Those games in particular I've really enjoyed. The things I've most enjoyed about them has been handing out caps to debutants,” he said.

"It's fantastic to see guys being rewarded for a lot of hard work over a number of years and being rewarded by pulling the England shirt on and that makes me smile every day."

Edited by Michael Beattie

View the original article here

Rankin and Morgan in England squad

Boyd Rankin and Eoin Morgan are in the England squad to play against their former team Ireland in Tuesday's one-day international at Malahide.

Bready paceman Rankin took a wicket on his England debut in a Twenty20 game against New Zealand in June.

Rankin could make his England ODI debut against the Irish, who he played 37 times for, while Morgan, who captains the team, is a former Malahide player.

"It is exciting to see him with three lions on his chest," said Morgan.

"The opportunity is endless and if he achieves his potential, hopefully we will see him in a white Test shirt sooner rather than later."

Morgan is also hopeful of forcing his way back into the Test set-up having not played for England in the longer-format of the game since the series against Pakistan in Dubai in February 2012.

"It is just weight of runs and lack of form has led me to where I am, being dropped," he continued.

"I think one-day runs can help. It was the prime reason I got selected in the first place."

The 26-year-old is England captain in the absence of Alastair Cook, who is being rested.

Bowler Steve Finn is among six England players with Test experience.

One-day specialists Ravi Bopara, Jos Buttler and Luke Wright are included, while the highly rated Ben Stokes, James Tredwell and James Taylor will all be out to impress with an Ashes tour coming up in the winter.

There are call-ups for Michael Carberry, Jamie Overton, Gary Ballance and Danny Briggs.

There promises to be a number of intriguing personal battles with Ireland's county players coming face-to-face with their colleagues.

There's the prospect of Middlesex pair Paul Stirling and Tim Murtagh against Finn and Morgan, Ed Joyce tussling with Sussex stars Wright and Chris Jordan, and George Dockrell aiming to get the bragging rights over Buttler and Overton.

There's also the very real possibility of best friends and Warwickshire team-mates William Porterfield and Rankin coming head-to-head from the very first delivery of the biggest cricket match ever to be hosted in Ireland.

It's a return to a familiar hunting ground for Morgan - he began his Leinster senior career with Malahide as a mere 13-year-old back in 2000.

Indeed, he was part of the Malahide side which captured the Irish Senior Cup in 2002.

Morgan will find the new international venue at Malahide barely recognisable from the club venue of a decade ago.

The ground has been transformed into a 10,000 capacity venue for the blue-riband fixture, and the game is on course to be a sell-out.

Ireland squad : William Porterfield (captain) (Warwickshire), George Dockrell (Somerset), Trent Johnston (YMCA), Ed Joyce (Sussex), John Mooney (North County), Tim Murtagh (Middlesex), Kevin O'Brien (Railway Union), Niall O'Brien (Leicestershire), Eddie Richardson (North County), Max Sorensen (The Hills), Paul Stirling (Middlesex), Andrew White (Instonians), Gary Wilson (Surrey).

England squad: Eoin Morgan (captain) (Middlesex), Gary Ballance (Yorkshire), Ravi Bopora (Essex), Danny Briggs (Hampshire), Jos Buttler (Somerset), Michael Carberry (Hampshire), Steven Finn (Middlesex), Chris Jordan (Sussex), Jamie Overton (Somerset), Boyd Rankin (Warwickshire), Ben Stokes (Durham), James Taylor (Notts), James Tredwell (Kent), Luke Wright (Sussex).

View the original article here

Ireland v England: Eoin Morgan and Ravi Bopara both hit centuries as hosts lose by six wickets in Dublin

Ireland had their moments, with Will Porterfield’s century and Tim Murtagh’s early wickets reducing England to a perilous 48 for four.

At that point, Morgan walked to the crease to a few boos, but he is widely respected in Irish cricket as its greatest batting talent and in the end his century was given a standing ovation by the biggest crowd for a cricket match in this country, which exceeded 10,000.

“It was amazing really,” said Morgan. “I won a trophy with this club – the All Ireland Trophy in 2002 – and it was a fantastic feeling today. I love this area. It is a fantastic part of Dublin and to get a victory like that was very satisfying.”

Despite the defeat, Ireland proved to their high-powered visitors from the International Cricket Council, including chief executive Dave Richardson, that a cricket culture exists here, which is one of the main requirements for a country to be granted Test status.

Now they just need to start beating Test-playing nations again.

They have not done that since their famous night in Bangalore and the grumbles over England sending weakened teams to Ireland will ring hollow in future after a fourth successive defeat on their own turf by a patched-up side.

England had a new look but debutants Rankin and Michael Carberry and the likes of Ben Stokes and James Taylor have realistic hopes of touring Australia with the Ashes squad this winter.

High stakes lead to nerves and Rankin started with five wides down the leg side and conceded 14 runs off his first two overs, before he settled with the wicket of Paul Stirling, caught off a thick edge to a rising delivery.

Then Rankin’s bounce pushed Ed Joyce back in his crease with the result he eventually trod on his stumps.

Rankin was the only player on the field to notice the bail had been dislodged and informed the umpires, who checked the replay before telling Joyce to go with a perplexed sell-out crowd silent as they tried to work out what had happened.

It was a dismissal which highlighted cricket’s porous borders. In the 2007 World Cup, Joyce, batting for England, was dismissed by Rankin, bowling for Ireland.

Porterfield has struggled for Warwickshire this season, with a highest score of 36 in the championship, but his measured innings was just what his side needed to post a respectable target.

James Tredwell came on in the 15th over and soon turned the ball.

He should have had Niall O’Brien caught in the deep but Carberry dropped a straightforward chance.

O’Brien then edged through vacant slip area before being bowled by a flighted delivery that turned and hit off stump.

England fielded just three specialist bowlers, picking instead all-rounders such as Ben Stokes and Bopara, which prompted Morgan at one point to turn to Carberry’s off-spin.

That decision cost 12 runs in an over which kick-started a late Irish surge as Porterfield brought up his hundred in a classic style with a six off his old mate Rankin.

Carberry’s nightmare debut, not quite on the Simon Kerrigan scale but uncomfortable enough, was completed when he went lbw for 10, and he was soon followed by Luke Wright.

Murtagh, such a consistent performer in county cricket, probed away on a pitch suiting his line and length style and Wright succumbed to the pressure as he was bowled off a bottom edge.

James Taylor played a horrible shot across the line to a nip-backer from Murtagh and Gary Ballance’s first innings for England was only two balls old when he tried to leave a ball outside off stump but feathered a catch behind.

Murtagh bowled his 10 overs for 33, but what followed let Ireland down.

Morgan and Bopara, who had been unable to take England home in the Champions Trophy final, shrugged off the pressure.

They did not put a foot wrong, attacking the spinners with precision hitting. The pair hit nine sixes with Bopara finding his range in his favourite area over midwicket.

He began what turned out to be the final over of the innings 14 runs short of his hundred but hit George Dockrell for 4, 6, 4 before Morgan ended the match with another six.

How England's debutants fared

Michael Carberry
Became a joke figure for the crowd after dropping two catches, fumbling the odd ball in the field and then bowling one over for 12 runs. Out lbw to a good ball from Johnston.

Gary Ballance
Took a good catch at first slip but out second ball edging when trying to leave a delivery from Murtagh. Not selected for Australia series so can now impress only in county cricket before Ashes selection.

Boyd Rankin
Made nervy start but looked dangerous once he settled. Outbowled Finn and can feel aggrieved fellow Irishman Morgan did not let him bowl his full 10 overs to give him a chance to claim a fifth wicket.

View the original article here

England stand-in captain Eoin Morgan refusing to get carried away after ODI victory over Ireland

"I enjoy the moment for what it is and then try to move on from there.

"But it was very satisfying, particularly getting over the line."

Ireland's score of 269 for seven was built around a fine hundred from their captain William Porterfield.

When that was followed by the capture of four early wickets in England's reply, three of them by Tim Murtagh, Ireland sensed a repeat of their famous 2011 World Cup defeat of their neighbours.

Morgan said: "Tim bowled really well. It did suit him and the length he bowled was terrific, asking a load of questions of the batsmen.

"We never got going for a while, but when we did, we capitalised.

"We managed to rebuild something and built from there."

Despite the loss, the day was still a momentous one for cricket in Ireland.

A crowd close to the ground's 10,000 capacity attended and the hosts proved competitive.

Porterfield said: "You've got to accept the fact we didn't get it quite right.

"Take nothing away from the way the two lads played, they were two fantastic hundreds. An unbroken 220-run partnership with two hundreds is a pretty good effort.

"But having England 48 for four and not being able to build that pressure and see that through is slightly frustrating for ourselves."

Ireland could also have extra reason for grievance given that the country produced both Morgan and another of England's key performers in debutant Boyd Rankin, who took four for 46.

Porterfield said: "Yes it is frustrating when a couple of Irish lads are playing against you, but there is nothing you can do.

"It is water under the bridge as far as we are concerned."

(Edited by Kristian Walsh)

View the original article here