Willey withdraws, Henry joins in as replacement LSG squad
Willey, who bid adieu to international cricket after the ODI World Cup in India last year, missed Lucknow’s IPL opener against Rajasthan Royals last week.
Fast bowler David Willey, who was the Man of the Match in England’s six-wicket victory over Ireland in the first ODI in Southampton on Thursday, said it was difficult for him to not being a part of the World Cup squad last year.
Wiley further said that he was not sure if he would be recalled to England team again after not playing international cricket in the last 12 months.
The left-arm pacer, Willey, was dropped on the eve of the World Cup, He was replaced by Jofra Archer who went on to play an instrumental role in England’s maiden World Cup win.
Advertisement
However, against Ireland on Thursday, which was his first match for England in 14 months, Willey returned with his career-best figure of 5/30. Taking his maiden five-wicket haul, the 30-year-old had laid the foundation for his team’s comfortable victory.
“Obviously I’ve been part of the group for four years, so to miss out at the 11th hour (World Cup squad) was difficult,” Willey said after the match at the Ageas Bowl as quoted by IANS.
“For me it’s about going out and enjoying every minute. Every opportunity could be the last one.
“I want to play my best cricket when I’m enjoying it. Hopefully the results keep coming,” he added.
England captain Eoin Morgan also heaped praise on Willey and said: “Given the story of Willey missing out on the World Cup squad, it’s a fantastic comeback. He and (Saqib) Mahmood were outstanding.”
Meanwhile, batting first, Ireland failed to put on a decent effort as England bundled them for a paltry total of 172 in the match that launched the new World Cup Super League to determine qualification for the ICC World Cup in 2023.
England side, which did not feature anyone from the Test squad that played against the West Indies due to their team-for-each-format policy, had initially floundered while chasing. They were down to 78/4 before Sam Billings (67 off 54 deliveries) and skipper Eoin Morgan (36 off 40) shared an unbeaten partnership of 96 runs to take the hosts home.
Advertisement
