Jason Roy, who scored a duck during England’s second warm-up game against New Zealand on Wednesday, isn’t worried about the lack of form of some of the batters in the team. The opening batter, who is part of the Delhi Bulls in the Abu Dhabi T10 League, said the players are training hard for the tournament and will “rise up” once the competition starts.
“We are training extremely hard. Some of the boys have come off a lot of cricket, but, they are getting into the swing of things. From my point of view, I am not worried at all. I have seen every single one our top-order win us games this summer. As soon as the competition starts, the boys rise up,” said Roy.
The 31-year-old, who played for the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), admitted that the experience of the IPL will help in the T20 World Cup.
“Coming from the IPL to T20 World Cup has a lot of benefits. We have a feel of things, training and playing on these pitches, spending a lot of time interacting with players from other teams. Boys who have played in the IPL have a big advantage,” added the opener.
England lost their first warm-up game against India and went on to defeat New Zealand in their second warm-up match by 13 runs. The English batter labelled India as one of the “most dangerous” teams in the tournament.
“India are playing some amazing cricket and have just completed IPL 2021. So, they will be one of the most dangerous sides. In our own group, South Africa have managed to defeat Pakistan and will be a dangerous outfit,” added Roy.
Talking about the loss in the first warm-up game, Roy said, “The India match was our first game after a long time. So, we are not very concerned about that loss. It was a case of getting to know where we can improve and we have to learn very quickly."
England, who will take on the defending champions West Indies in their campaign opener on October 23, will be without the services of their star players Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Sam Curran.
“It’s not a problem but a shame really. You look at the England squad now and it is still very strong at the moment. So, we are not worried about our chances,” concluded Roy.