West Indies vs England: We found ways of winnings games, says Joe Root

England are one of the sides with least IPL experience, barring skipper Eoin Morgan. So, it was both surprising and refreshing when they made it to the World T20 final. For a team known to resist change, this England side has been different.

“We found ways of winning games, which is really important. We found ourselves in a number of different situations that we have overcome. It means that whatever happens in the final, we would have been in that situation before in the tournament. We have experience to go back upon — ways that we have been successful,” Yorkshireman Joe Root, who has been key to England’s success story, said.

The 25-year-old started the turnaround with a 44-ball 83 as England chased down 230 against South Africa. It was a huge win after they had lost their tournament opener against the West Indies. And now after five matches, Root has scored 195 runs at 48.75 (strike-rate 145.52). “It has been pretty good throughout, now to make sure of one more strong performance and adapt to the situations there (final).”

England won the World T20 in 2010. But since then it has been pretty downhill for them in limited-overs cricket. They lost 3 of the 4 matches, including one against the Netherlands, in the last edition of World T20, while in the 50-overs World Cup in Australia last year, they lost to Bangladesh.

Staying true

So what did they do differently? “There hasn’t been any attitude swing or the way we approach practice, but we stayed true to what we believed in as a side and how we want to play our cricket. (We) had self-belief. Everyone has contributed in some way, shape or form which is always nice going into a final.

“The way we bowled at the death has been outstanding. It’s about making sure everyone is doing what he is doing in practice. It will be a very special day if we win here,” Root observed.

England’s death bowling, indeed, has been superb. They conceded only 11 runs in the last two overs in their 10-run win over Sri Lanka, while in the semi-final against New Zealand, they pulled things back from 91/2 after 10.3 overs to restrict the Blackcaps to 153/8 after 20.

But West Indies have big-hitters down to No. 8 and will carry the momentum of beating India in their backyard.

“If you gonna win the World Cup, you have to be the best throughout the tournament. It’s irrelevant really who we play. We have to do the stuff we do in practice and put up a strong performance and do everything we can to go over the line. We have just got to do our business like we want to do. A style of cricket that is positive. Plan to do that on Sunday as well. We know how strong West Indies are as a side. We have to play well to beat them. Make sure we look at our own game,” Root said.
Captain Morgan has failed to fire with the bat — 61 runs at 15.25 in five matches. But he has been receiving accolades for his captaincy. “It has been fantastic. We have not taken a step back, have kept going forward. (We have) keen guys; players willing to learn. That’s a massive factor of how we got here. Guys have gone out and been brave. If we continue to do that, we will continue to improve.”

Coach Trevor Bayliss has played a big role in helping the England team unfetter itself. Root agreed.

“(He) has been great throughout. Has an emotionless face. No tension or emotion from him. That’s one thing that is important in these tournaments and in the final.”

It would be a great experience for this young England team to play the final in front of 67,000 fans. The title would be the cherry on the cake. “This is what you dream of as a kid; these opportunities, playing the final of a world cup. Everyone is really excited to get out there on Sunday. I have seen plenty of big games (played here) on TV, I was the 12th man here a few years ago as well. Every game has been rocking for us (in this tournament). So hopefully it will be the same (in the final).”