Mitchell startles Morgan; England to face concussions?

With the backs to the wall, captain Eoin Morgan could have resurrected the English cruise had he not been struck by the lethality of Mitchell Starc. This has been a persistent problem with Morgan, reckons Ankit Banerjee, who feels Bayliss and Co. have to bail the captain out of this issue.

There was a high billing on this match. The general feeling was that the Australian team was lacking the drive and steam. England on the other hand, were raring to go on overdrive mode. The famous Old Trafford was the venue for the decider, which the punters predicted would be a humdinger, but it was not to be.

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England were teased and tamed by the Australians, who made early inroads. With England looking down the barrel, the onus was on captain fantastic Morgan to rise to the party. He looked very focussed and unperturbed till a Starc delivery at over 90 mph hit Morgan on the helmet during the seventh over.

The entire Australian team and the English boys were shaken up. Memories of Phil Hughes’ demise must have flashed back. One could see, Starc, who was present on that occasion too, felt nervous and Morgan looked stoned.

Morgan managed to stay on his feet as the signals for assistance were being made. Immediately, both the England physio and doctor hurried to assess the situation and after a few minutes of discussion, he marched off the field to a rapturous ovation more out of relief.

Trevor Bayliss, the England coach, who was in charge of New South Wales when Hughes died, said Morgan had been dizzy after the blow but that by the end of the match he was up and about in the dressing room, although he will continue to be monitored for the effects of concussion.

This is not the first instance that Morgan has taken such evasive actions as it has happened in the past as well. It is high time the think-tank takes notice of this and comes with a solution.

Morgan is a batsman who always looks to play on the front foot, no matter what and that is what is precisely getting him tangled. That forward leap is his initial trigger movement and once he is committed to that, it becomes very difficult to play the short ball. Now if the rising ball is used as a surprise weapon, it becomes tough for the dynamic skipper.

Solutions have to come fast or else other teams will surely use this against Morgan, which may put England in trouble in the near future. Morgan finishes as the leading batsman in the series with 278 runs at 69.50. His next duties with England will come in November when he leads the one-day side against Pakistan.

(A cricket geek to the tee, Ankit Banerjee smokes and snorts it all day long. The romance with the sport incepted since the 1996 World Cup semi-final. He is a winner of the 2011 edition of the All-India college cricket quiz.)