Andrew Strauss says England have a good chance to win the Champions Trophy

Andrew Strauss, the England cricket team’s director, took a bold decision to let some of his players play the Indian Premier League at the cost of participation in the home series against South Africa. Having played the game of cricket, Strauss understands how important it is to gain experience.

He allowed many of the big names from England to play in the IPL. The likes of Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes and others played in the IPL for different franchises. This experience certainly helped them gain more experience and their knowledge of the white-ball is even better.

Strauss was talking to TOI when he talked on various topics that interested the England fans. Stokes, Woakes, and Moeen Ali have all suffered injuries during the three-match ODI series against the South Africans. However, the director of ECB ruled out the majority of the injuries. He said that all the injuries are minor.

He said, “Thankfully I don’t think any of those injuries are of massive concern at this stage.” The presence of Stokes and Woakes is extremely important for England as they need both of them. The allrounder has a knee problem. He underwent a surgery for the same last year but looks fine now according to Strauss.

On sending players to IPL

Strauss was very positive about sending players to the IPL, he said that the experience they gain from the IPL is invaluable and it is okay to risk the injuries. Claiming that injuries are a part and parcel of the game, the former skipper backed his decision.

“That is the slight risk you take when you make people available for a chunk of cricket that is outside the international schedule,” he said.

“Injuries are part and parcel of the life generally, but on one hand you weigh up the potential risk and on the other, you ask what they can potentially gain from that experience,” Strauss added.

He also said that it is important to balance the commitments of the players but also admitted to the fact that players learned a great deal when they played in India. “It’s not an easy one to navigate our way through,”

“I think the players who have gone over (to India this year) and played a number of games have benefited massively from the experience,” he revealed.

On the Champions Trophy

England are yet to win a major 50-over tournament. They have had plenty of good teams over the years but have seldom made it deep in the tournament. After their first-round exit from the 2015 World Cup, England have changed the way they play cricket.

Strauss, however, thinks this team can do it. “We’ve match-winners from one to seven, so I think other teams will look at us and think they’re up against dangerous opposition,” he exclaimed.

However, he admitted that you cannot have off days while playing in a tournament like Champions Trophy. He said, “But one thing we do know about the Champions Trophy is that there’s no margin for error. You can’t afford any bad days, so you’re a little bit in the lap of the gods.”

He said that you are ought to have bad days when you play such type of cricket. “When you’re trying to play a high-tempo, more positive, aggressive style of play, at the back of your mind, you almost have to accept you’re going to get it wrong now and again and you’re going to have some bad days along the way,” Strauss concluded.