England have reasons to be optimistic ahead of the World Cup, says Michael Atherton
Monday 9 February 2015 23:44, UK
Michael Atherton says a cloud has been lifted over the England one-day side and sees them making the semi-finals of the World Cup.
England beat the West Indies by nine-wickets in their first warm-up game in Sydney, with Chris Woakes particularly impressing with 5-19 as they bowled Windies out for just 122.
"It's always the hope that kills us at this stage," said Atherton. "But I certainly think England are far better placed now than they were a few months ago when that great cloud was hanging over them in Sri Lanka, about the form of Alastair Cook and what to do with him.
"The selectors made the move [to drop Cook] and it has paid dividends, that cloud has now been lifted.
"They've had a decent tri-series - got to the final, but beaten by Australia. Yet Eoin Morgan, the captain, still felt they got much of what they needed to get out of that series.
"It was a helpful pitch for them today but Woakes exploited conditions - he got two wickets in his opening over, Chris Gayle caught down the leg-side and then Darren Bravo first ball, so he was on a hat-trick.
"He had a great day, was very impressive and England are coming along nicely. Though they certainly won’t start the tournament as favourites, you can see them getting through to the semi-finals."
Lacklustre
For the West Indies, the outlook is a little bleaker - they fielded 15 players to England’s 11 in the game, but looked under-cooked in their first game in Australia.
"The West Indies looked dangerously lacklustre at times," said Atherton. "It wasn’t a good workout from their perspective.
"They’ll have to put this behind them very quickly, with a warm-up game against Scotland to come, then their opening game against Ireland in Pool B is looming large for them and on this showing, they’re going to have a match on their hand.
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"It’s difficult to know how much value to put on the game really, with 15 playing 11, but they were put in their place firmly by England."
Professional
England play Pakistan in their final warm-up game on Wednesday before their opening showdown against Australia in Melbourne on Saturday.
"This game was practically finished three hours before the finishing time so it was a bit of a walkover from England," Atherton added. "They looked pretty professional, caught their catches, and bowled well in helpful conditions.
"Generally the pitches are going to be a bit more batsmen friendly, with greater pace and bounce but they’ve got a settled side going into the early stages of the tournament and who knows.
"With Pakistan in a couple of days time - if they can win that one, at least they go into that opening encounter against Australia with a bit of form behind them."
You can watch every match of the 2015 ICC World Cup live on Sky Sports on our dedicated channel, including Australia against England from 3am on Sky Sports World Cup on Saturday 14 February.
