Cardiff: Mind games are in play before the England-Pakistan semi-final, with both teams looking to adopt a positive outlook in a high pressure game.
But England captain Eoin Morgan hopes to capitalise on the psychological factor that they are the only team with a 100 per cent win record in the tournament so far.
“I’m very encouraged by the way we’ve played so far. Part of playing the way we have been playing before we came into the tournament was obviously to try and reproduce it in this very tough tournament; also we needed to start well, and I think we’ve done that brilliantly. I hope we’ve not played our best cricket yet. So we hope to play well and get through. The focus is on tomorrow.”
Morgan also thinks that Cardiff is a good venue for his team. “Cardiff’s always been a very good venue for us. We had great support in the last game. It was a full house and everybody seems to get right behind us. I think tomorrow is sold out as well.”
The impact of positive thinking can also be seen in the England players’ approach to the game.
England opener Alex Hales has revealed in the official media book for the semi-final that he “always believed that a good knock was only a start of more to come”.
He added: “I like to think I still have a lot more in the tank. I think I can push on and score more runs. I have had good two years in the One-day side, but I like to think it is only the start.” In the last match at this venue against New Zealand, Hales cracked 56.
Morgan wants his players to consider their performance in the Champions Trophy as a build up for the 2019 World Cup. “We’ve had a little bit of success, and we’ve played the right brand of cricket. But getting games under the guys’ belts in order to win a World Cup is very important. When you get to the latter stages of a World Cup, you need to have at least 100 games under your belt in order to produce your best at that stage.”
The England captain is willing to back players who are out of form like Jason Roy — though hinting that Jonny Bairstow may replace him against Pakistan.
Morgan would not confirm his playing XI at Tuesday’s pre-match press conference in Cardiff, but said there was “a chance we could make a change”.
The skipper added: “We have kept the same policy for two years now. If somebody does get left out, they’re not going to be far from our plans. They’re certainly going to be in the same group of players gearing towards the 2019 World Cup.”
With that in mind, even if a player is dropped for a game, Morgan urges them to think positively.
“I back all my players. I see the best in them, and I believe in them a lot, I believe in what my selectors do, and what every one of the backroom staff does. Getting to this stage of the tournament, we need results, and if that means somebody misses out, it’s unfortunate. But for the team’s sake, we need to get results. We want to win this tournament.”
