England’s cricket coach Matthew Mott is keeping the door open for star players Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer as the team gears up for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup. Both Stokes and Archer are currently sidelined due to injuries, but Mott is optimistic about their recovery and their potential inclusion in the squad for the T20 World Cup in the USA and Caribbean next year.
Stokes underwent knee surgery following this year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, while Archer has been dealing with a long-term shoulder problem. Despite their current fitness challenges, Matthew Mott recognizes the invaluable contributions of the duo to the team and is willing to give them every opportunity to regain full fitness.
“I think that’s a given,” Matthew Mott stated when asked about the possibility of Stokes and Archer being considered for the World Cup selection. “Ben, aside from his incredible match-winning ability in every department, gives us that ability to have a seam bowler in your top six that gives you so many options with your team balance…It makes selection a hell of a lot easier. So that’s a given.”
“In terms of Jofra, you’ve just got absolute box-office pace, change of pace, bowl any over in the innings. Bowl your Super Over, bowl your last over when they need to. He on the park is massive, everyone would agree with that,” Matthew Mott added.
While the T20 World Cup is a significant focus for England in 2024, the immediate priority is the ongoing T20I series against the West Indies. England is aiming to win the fifth and final game of the series to secure a positive 3-2 series result.
Matthew Mott’s side leveled the series at 2-2, thanks in part to Phil Salt’s back-to-back centuries in Trinidad. Salt’s impressive form has sparked discussions about the opening partnership for England, with Mott acknowledging the undeniable case made by the in-form right-hander.
“It’s looking pretty good, isn’t it?” Matthew Mott commented on the Salt-Buttler opening pairing. “We’ve got a lot of time between now and then. Obviously, Salty has put an undeniable case there, and Jos is one of the greatest of all time. So how we get that top six or seven going will be an interesting thing.”
With less than six months remaining until the T20 World Cup, Mott sees the West Indies series as an opportunity to finalize the squad composition. “We always said with this (West Indies) series we’ll go pretty close to the side we’re looking for, otherwise why would they be here?” Mott emphasized. “We don’t get many opportunities to play together before the World Cup. So this is a very strong team we’ve bought out here.”
