Adil Rashid believes England’s World Cup blowout in India will have no impact on the defence of their T20 crown this summer, claiming they still have “the mindset of champions”.
Jos Buttler’s side surrendered their ODI title meekly last year, crashing out in the group stage after six defeats from nine games, but still hold the 20-over title they claimed in 2022.
Competition is likely to be fierce again in June when the T20 World Cup takes place in the West Indies and United States of America, but Rashid is confident there is no scarring from their tournament trouble last time around.
Instead, the leg-spinner trusts a change of format will help unlock his side’s winning mentality.
“We are not thinking of what has gone on in the past, we’re not thinking about the poor World Cup or people not being in form. That’s a completely different format,” he said.
“Yes, we had a poor run or whatever and we didn’t play well: bat, ball, as a team, as a unit, everything. But I think this is a completely different format where we’re currently world champions. You have the mindset of champions.
“We’re confident. We’ve got the team, we’ve got the mindset, we’ve got the players, we’ve got the experience. If we go out there having that same belief, I think we’ll hopefully go all the way.
“Prior to that we may not be playing well but as soon the tournament comes, people can turn up, teams can turn up and just switch on and win the World Cup.”
England have one warm-up series against Pakistan in May before they fly to the Caribbean and are expected to name a squad, as well as the provisional World Cup group, next week.
Jofra Archer is highly likely to be included, 14 months on from his last international appearance and with the usual lofty expectations, but captain Buttler and head coach Matthew Mott look set to rely on many of the same players who came crashing down in India.
Rashid held his head above water amid those poor results, leading the wicket charts with 15, and will once again be a central part of the plans. At 36, he may not have too many more World Cups left, but he is already doing his bit to help lay a line of succession.
Rashid funded the building of the cricket centre that carries his name in his native Bradford and can often be found mentoring aspiring players alongside a coaching staff led by brother Amar and including the likes of former England seamer Sajid Mahmood.
He was also on hand to help the England and Wales Cricket Board launch a new national tape ball competition in Birmingham last week, and is passionate about helping those in communities like his own prosper.
“It’s only 10 minutes from my house. When I’m at home, I pop in, see how things are, have a little train, have a little bowl myself with whoever’s there,” he said.
“There’s a lot of youngsters where we’re from in Bradford, a lot of people who want to play cricket with good talent. We’ve had many youngsters come through that are already playing for Yorkshire academy, playing under-11s, 13s, 15s, second XI.
“One of the main reasons for opening the cricket centre is to give that next generation of cricketers coming through the opportunity to potentially make it to professional cricket, but that’s just one part of it. The other part is to make sure you’re getting people off the streets and creating a community where people can come and play.”
ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Warm-Up matches confirmed
The official warm-up match fixtures for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 have been announced. Matches are scheduled to be played from Monday 27 May to Saturday 1 June across the USA and at two venues in Trinidad and Tobago in the West Indies.
The venues to host the 16 warm up matches are the Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas; Broward County Stadium, Broward County, Florida and Queen’s Park Oval and Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad and Tobago.
Warm-up fixtures will be 20 overs per side and will not carry international T20 status as teams will be allowed to field all members of their 15-player squad. In a change from the previous rights cycle, teams will now have the option of playing up to two warm-up matches depending on arrival time at the event.
The West Indies against Australia fixture at Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago on Thursday 30 May will be open to fans, tickets will be available at tickets.t20worldcup.com or box offices located at the National Cricket Centre and Queen’s Park Oval from 16 May.
Warm-up match schedule:
Monday 27 May
Canada v Nepal, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas 10h30
Oman v Papua New Guinea, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago 15h00
Namibia v Uganda, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago 19h00
Tuesday 28 May
Sri Lanka v Netherlands, Broward County Stadium, Broward County, Florida 10h30
Bangladesh v USA, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas 10h30
Australia v Namibia, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 19h00
Wednesday 29 May
South Africa intra-squad, Broward County Stadium, Broward County, Florida 10h30
Afghanistan v Oman, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 13h00
Thursday 30 May
Nepal v USA, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas 10h30
Scotland v Uganda, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago 10h30
Netherlands v Canada, Grand Prairie Cricket Stadium, Grand Prairie, Texas 15h00
Namibia v Papua New Guinea, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago 15h00
West Indies v Australia, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 19h00
Friday 31 May
Ireland v Sri Lanka, Broward County Stadium, Broward County, Florida 10h30
Scotland v Afghanistan, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago 10h30
Saturday 1 June
Bangladesh v India, Venue TBC USA
IPL: Washout confirms SRH play-off place
Sunrisers Hyderabad are into the Indian Premier League play-offs despite their game against Gujarat Titans being abandoned without even doing the toss due to rain.
SRH move onto 15 points, with one game remaining, but are now ensured a top-four finish for the first time since 2020.
Their top-two hopes have taken a hit though – they have to beat Punjab Kings in their final game and hope Rajasthan Royals lose to Kolkata Knights Riders to finish second.
The Titans were already out of play-off contention after their previous game against KKR was also called off due to a heavy storm without hitting a ball. They finish their season currently third from bottom, though that could change depending on results in the final few matches.
Bolt joined by multiple sports stars for first look at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium
ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 Ambassador Usain Bolt got a first look at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium from the best seats in the house, along with cricket legends and New York sports icons.
The Jamaican sprint legend was joined in this special preview by USA cricketers Corey Anderson and Monak Patel along with cricket legend Sir Curtly Ambrose (West Indies), Shoaib Malik (Pakistan), and Liam Plunkett (England). Also present during this landmark event was a star-studded line-up of New York sports stars, including John Starks (NBA / New York Knicks), Elena Delle Donne (WNBA/USA), Bartolo Colon (MLB/New York Yankees-Mets), Victor Cruz (NFL/New York Giants), and Ibtihaj Muhammad (Fencing/USA).
To commemorate the occasion, the stars all signed a giant cricket bat, which will be present at the venue for all eight ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2024 matches hosted there between June 3-12. The event marks the official final countdown to the first ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in New York, with Sri Lanka and South Africa set to clash in the venue's first match on June 3.
Bolt was confident the venue would provide an exciting and energetic cricket experience.
“Coming from the Caribbean where cricket is a part of life, I’m very excited to be part of the T20 World Cup coming to the USA for the first time, co-hosting with the West Indies. Getting one of the sport’s biggest events into the USA is a big milestone and can provide a launching pad leading towards cricket’s inclusion in the LA Olympics in 2028," he said.
“The new stadium is going to be a fantastic place to watch from. It’s very enclosed and you feel very close to the action. I can imagine it will be full of energy when cricket fans get to Nassau County International Stadium next month," Bolt noted.
Brett Jones, CEO of T20 USA Inc. called the event a fitting welcome to cricket in the USA.
“Today was a fantastic celebration, showcasing a truly out of this world stadium. Having Usain and a host of New York sports stars and Olympic legends to experience it was fantastic and a fitting welcome to cricket in the USA," Jones said.
“Having Curtly Ambrose, Liam Plunkett, Shoaib Malik, Corey Anderson and Monak Patel here and seeing their response to the stadium and the playing surface was also pretty special. It gives us a real sense of what the fans can expect next month," he added.
The 34,000-seater temporary stadium is the first of its kind in international cricket, and is also believed to be the largest ever constructed in the United States.
Featured at the unveiling were extensive hospitality and media pavilions on the north and south ends of the venue, which join the east and west general admission stands. Among the new additions are the Cabana seats in the North pavilion along with the Corner Club seats with a private party area.
The stadium is one of the three venues in the USA for the upcoming mega-event. Florida and Texas will also host matches from the event.
The USA are co-hosts for the event alongside the West Indies, where 39 matches will be played across six venues. The Final will be held on 29 June in Barbados.
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