James Taylor unsure of place in England team for fifth ODI in Sri Lanka
Monday 8 December 2014 14:13, UK
England batsman James Taylor admits he is not sure of his place in the team for Wednesday’s fifth one-day international with Sri Lanka.
Taylor top-scored with 90 in Sunday’s six-wicket defeat, which leaves England 3-1 down in the seven-match series.
Taylor was only playing however because of the absence of skipper Alastair Cook, who sat the game out through suspension.
Live One-Day International Cricket
His Nottinghamshire team-mate Alex Hales, despite his duck on Sunday, is the man in possession at No 3 in the batting order.
And Taylor says he is not necessarily expecting to feature in the fifth match in Pallekele, and may have to bide his time to get another opportunity to make a case for inclusion in the 15-man squad for next year’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Taylor told Sky Sports: “It was nice for me personally to contribute to the team, obviously my first game for a while.
“I’m delighted to score a few, but unfortunately it wasn’t enough for the team’s cause. It might have been a one-off opportunity for me, so I managed to score a few runs.
“Hopefully I get another go. But I’ll take each day as it comes, the classic cliché, but I’m really not sure when my next opportunity comes.
“If I get another go in the next game, it’s up to me to take that opportunity again, and hopefully post a total that the team can defend. And hopefully I can put in another couple of decent performances to get me on that plane (to the World Cup)."
“But like I say, we’ve got a few more games coming up. Hopefully we can get back to winning ways, and I can help the team score.”
Much has been made in the past of Taylor's slight stature - he is 5'6" - but he says that he can still pack a punch, and proved it against Sri Lanka with two big sixes.
"I'd like to think I'm not the smallest ever guy to play cricket," he said. "I don't believe size matters. I can pack a decent punch for my size - and, as long as you can hit the ball over the rope, it doesn't matter what size you are."
