Cricket World Cup: England could leave out Adil Rashid v Bangladesh
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Adil Rashid has taken 130 wickets in 85 one-day internationals at an average of 35.06 since the last World Cup
England v Bangladesh, ICC World Cup |
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Venue: Cardiff Date: Saturday, 7 June |
Coverage: Live Test Match Special commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra. Text commentary on BBC Sport website, plus desktop, tablets, mobiles and app. |
England are considering leaving out leg-spinner Adil Rashid for their World Cup game against Bangladesh in Cardiff on Saturday, says captain Eoin Morgan.
Rashid, 31, is the leading wicket-taker in one-day internationals since the last World Cup, but took 0-43 off five overs in the defeat by Pakistan on Monday.
Conditions in Cardiff are also likely to be more favourable for pace bowlers.
"There's a chance we might go to four seamers," Morgan told BBC Sport.
Both of the matches in Cardiff so far in the tournament have been played on green-tinged surfaces, with 22 of the 30 wickets to fall going to seamers.
Heavy rain on Friday mean the pitch remained under cover, but Morgan said it had "extra green grass" when he saw it on Thursday.
The dimensions of the ground - short straight boundaries, longer square of the wicket - also favour quicker bowlers.
If England do omit Rashid, it seems Liam Plunkett will be recalled after being left out of the loss to Pakistan.
Tom Curran could also come into contention if England decide to rotate one of Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer or Mark Wood.
England's wicket-takers in 2019 World Cup | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Matches | Wickets | Economy rate | |
Moeen Ali | 2 | 4 | 5.65 |
Jofra Archer | 2 | 3 | 6.23 |
Chris Woakes | 2 | 3 | 7.30 |
Ben Stokes | 2 | 2 | 5.59 |
Liam Plunkett | 1 | 2 | 5.28 |
Mark Wood | 1 | 2 | 5.30 |
Adil Rashid | 2 | 1 | 6.00 |
"The wicket that we saw yesterday looked similar to the wickets that have been played on here previously," said Morgan.
"With weather around as well, there's a chance we will look into changing the team."
England's 14-run defeat by Pakistan left them with one win and one loss from their first two games.
They entered the tournament as favourites to win the World Cup for the first time, but were hampered by a poor fielding performance at Trent Bridge.
"We're disappointed we lost, but it represents an opportunity to learn more about us as a side and hopefully to kick on for the rest of the tournament," said Morgan.
"It's not going to be plain sailing the whole way. It's now important to see a good, positive reaction."
Bangladesh are no longer minnows of the world game. Their experienced side beat South Africa in their opening game, before a tense two-wicket defeat by New Zealand on Wednesday.
England have lost their past two World Cup matches against Bangladesh, most famously four years ago when a dismal defeat in Adelaide sealed a first-round exit.
"They are a very strong side," said Morgan. "Their experienced senior players have played a lot more games than we have, and they probably don't get as much coverage as other sides do.
"We know them inside out. We know the challenges they present, so hopefully we can overcome them."
Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza said those two victories over England would not help them on Saturday.
"It's a new, fresh match," he said.
"We have been beating them at the last two World Cup. It doesn't mean that we will make it happen again.
"There is the chances, and for that we have to play at our best."