Double World Cup winners are the best England squad that's ever been: Adil Rashid

Veteran spinner Adil Rashid has said that England's double World Cup-winning team is 'the best England squad that's ever been'. The 35-year-old was a key member of the squad formed in the aftermath of England's humiliation at the 2015 World Cup in Australia. England have since advanced to three finals and two semi-finals in following five ICC (International Cricket Council) competitions, including victories in the 2019 Cricket World Cup and the 2022 T20 World Cup. 

Rashid hasn't played since a two-match IPL stint for Sunrisers Hyderabad in April due to a back injury. Speaking at a gathering in Tottenham ahead of the 2023 Hundred, he insisted that he was nearing full fitness once more and that every member of the squad would be eager to play the forthcoming World Cup. He also acknowledged it will be a difficult challenge when they travel to India and strive to perform at their peak collectively.

"I came back from the IPL with a bit of an injury, so I took that month off during the T20 Blast to get fully fit, and hopefully now I'm good to go. It's not just myself. I'm sure everybody going there, the whole squad will be ready and raring to go. As defending champions, we'll definitely go there with that mindset. It'd be very exciting times, but it will not be an easy challenge, especially in India in their backyard, where they are very strong," the England spinner was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

"We'll definitely have to be our best as a unit, as a squad, but it's something that we know we can achieve if we put our mind to it, and it's something we'll definitely be looking forward to," he added.

Defending the World Cup title and winning it again, that's the mentality: Rashid 

Rashid continued by saying that he and his team have high expectations for the future and think they can win many more championships. The 35-year-old added that England will defend their championship and try to win it again when they compete in this year's World Cup. 

"It's something that, as a youngster, you dream of playing World Cups for your country and winning. For a lot of us, that's become reality as well, so that's something that I'm sure we'll all keep very close to us. And we also know that there's more to come as well. We also believe that this is not the end of it. We have that mindset of, yes, let's go beyond. Yes, we've created some kind of history, but we definitely want to push further on. Defending it and winning it again, that's the mentality," Rashid added.

He further stated that England's legacy had already been established, and the intelligence of this team will not be judged by their success or failure in India. According to him, the double World Cup-winning team is the best squad since 2015. 

"Two World Cup wins, back to back, holding both. In terms of World Cup squads, from 2015 to this day, I don't know if any England team has ever been any better in terms of winning series, in terms of going from No. 7 or 8 in the world, to No. 1. So as a squad, from 2015 until now, that era, I think we've definitely got the best England squad that's ever been," he further said.