Kanpur: Having finally won a game in India by beating the home side in the third ODI, England are feeling a lot more confident going into the three-match T20 International series that begins here on Thursday, captain Eoin Morgan said on Wednesday.
"I think confidence is the big word in T20 cricket, confidence and momentum. At the moment the guys are feeling lot more confident than they were after game two. They were doing a lot of hard work and did not get much reward. Having had a win under our belt, we are looking forward to the three-match T20 series in what could potentially be very exciting," Morgan said on the eve of the series opener.
Read: India vs England: Key T20 specialists to watch out for
England beat India by five runs at the Eden Gardens in the third and final ODI for their first win on the tour.
Morgan informed that Joe Root has recovered from a niggle that kept him out of the third ODI in Kolkata and is available for selection for Thursday's T20 match. However, pacer David Willey will not take part in Thursday’s game.
"David flew in yesterday, missed practice in the morning and he won't be fit for selection. Nothing serious showed up on the scan, which is a huge positive because initially it looked quite painful, but he won't be fit for tomorrow's game," said Morgan.
Read: Suresh Raina, Parvez Rasool can use T20 series to seal Team India spot: Virat Kohli
Looking ahead at the Champions Trophy in June in England, Morgan was asked about the relevance of the T20 series here.
"Yes it is (relevant). The group is very similar. Going from the series we have just played where bowlers have found it difficult honing specific skills going into T20 cricket can be relevant. We don't know where the fifty-over game is going," said Morgan.
"There might be periods in games where we just go to yorkers because that might work on a particular ground. So improving your skills to be able to do that might help the guys in the long run," he said.
"Winning is priority. Part and parcel of winning is improving skills along the way, or at least winning one half of the game, winning your bowling or your batting. In the ODI series we haven't really put up a complete performance.
"Our guys aren't really experienced either, we came here with a hugely inexperienced T20 team and got to the final (World T20). So the attitude and desire isn't a problem, it's just tying the skills together."
It's a 4.30pm start for the first match of the series to counter the dew factor and one can expect another run feast as it was the case in the high-scoring ODI series.
Unlike India, the England T20 team doesn't look much different from the one that featured in ODIs.
The only notable addition to the side is left-arm pacer Tymal Mills, who is among the fastest in the country and regularly clocks 90mph.
The 24-year-old Yorkshire born is a T20 specialist who would love to play in the upcoming IPL.
He was playing in the leagues in Australia and New Zealand before joining the national team here.
The visitors' morale has been lifted after eking out a five-run win in the third and final ODI for their first victory on the tour, during which they were thrashed in the Test series before going down 1-2 in ODIs.
It is set to be another closely fought series with in-form batsmen in both the sides. Opener Jason Roy displayed sublime touch in the ODIs, smashing three back-to-back half centuries.
Captain Eoin Morgan too is in top form and would like to lead his team to a series win in India.
Their pacers, especially Jake Ball and David Willey, impressed in spells but Morgan would want more consistency from them.
It will be a challenge for the young Indian batsmen to face the express pace of the Englishmen.
Squads:
India: Virat Kohli (captain), Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, MS Dhoni, Bhuneshwar Kumar, Mandeep Singh, Amit Mishra, Ashish Nehra, Manish Pandey, Hardika Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Parvez Rasool, Lokesh Rahul, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina.
England: Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jake Ball, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Liam Dawson, Jonny Bairstow Chris Jordan, Tymal Mills, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey.
