More than just the Three Lions: Eoin Morgan

Lord’s Cricket ground. Located in the dense suburb of London – St. John’s Wood, a place that exudes serenity and quietness. St. John’s Wood is the quintessential ‘Beverly Hills’ or ‘Hollywood’ when compared with the outside world. The only problem, if it is a problem is the location of the Lord’s Cricket Ground.  A strange ground, with nothing really special apart from the surroundings, becomes a vivid scene each time there is a cricket match. The gloomy sight of the ‘black and white neighborhood’ becomes a colorful picture. Almost overnight seemingly.

2005. Just another day in an important cricket match. England and the West Indies had played on the 22-yard patch at Lord’s a countless number of times. Overcast conditions and rain playing spoilsport did little to help the cause. The match was destined to be a draw. While the England players went through their motions on the ‘holy’ grass and the ‘holy’ pitch at Lord’s, Eoin Morgan was warming the bench inside the maze of the England dressing room.

In spite of the sporadic rain clouds and the occasional sunshine descending around the ground, Eoin Morgan sat in his sweater. The ‘Three Lions’ across his chest said a distinct story. He wasn’t just another substitute fielder in the dugout. Neither was he one of those county players who were subbed in each time a player got off. He was a Dubliner. For those who don’t know, the Irish from Dublin are tough. Though as nails. And Eoin Morgan was one of those ‘as tough as they come’ type of a player.

Day three and the sun decided to smile upon the greens at Lords. However, England and Matthew Hoggard, in particular, had a problem. He had to go off. That moment was effectively Eoin Morgan’s tryst with England cricket. For Morgan, however, it was something of a similarity. Of course, he wanted to play for England ever since he was a boy. Yet, he had donned the green of Ireland in the World Cup a few months prior. And whether he had anything to do with it or not, Irish cricket was on the ascendency.

Almost 8 years after donning the ‘three lions’ across his chest, Morgan wasn’t just a member of the England side. Such was his importance that he had now become the captain. Sure, he had flirted with leadership early in his career, but this was a tectonic shift of sorts in his career. And as far as he was concerned, cricket had just become an extremely serious profession.

The timing of his appointment as captain couldn’t have been any better. The announcement had been made a week before Christmas. The perfect Christmas gift perhaps? Of course, it was. He teamed up with another man from the England past. Peter Moores, was by far the best British coach in county cricket at the time. David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd, apart from all the antics in his ‘little black book on commentary’ illustrated the importance of having Moores in the side with just one sentence. “I do enjoy watching other coaches at work and I think we have a gem in Peter Moores.” And that was it.

Morgan, Moores and the rest of the ‘Brady bunch’ boarded the plane to Australia. Little did they know the magnitude of what was to come in the World Cup. In a nutshell, the Brits failed to live up to their pomp and pride. The loss to Bangladesh meant that ‘Queen and country’ had been effectively humiliated. To make matters worse, it was on the soil of a familiar foe, Australia.

The axes swayed with swiftness. Someone had to go. However, it wouldn’t be Morgan. Peter Moores was given the boot, and not for the first time. As they always do, English cricket went back in time. From the fallows, Andrew Strauss was made the top brass. With amicable wisdom on his side, Strauss was given the task of revamping English cricket. With the World T20 looming large, the changes were needed but had to be done with stern rapidness.

England boarded the flight to India for the T20 as dark horses. Not a single person, whether a pundit or a fan gave Morgan and his men even the remotest of chances of making it out of the Super 10’s itself.

The doldrums and the tom-tom drums began to beat with monotonous regularity. As far as Eoin Morgan and England were concerned, their World T20 hopes had been deflated. Humiliation. The way Chris Gayle deposited the ball into the Wankhede stands was humiliation. Matter, however, were to go from bad to worse. England was on the brink of yet another humiliation. This time, it was against the spirited Afghans. The top brass was in the house as well. Andrew Strauss had boarded the first flight out of Heathrow after the loss to the Windies. It was crisis and the situation was getting out of hand.

Some Eoin Morgan brilliance, with the bat, of course, ensured a win. The England side, however, came together following that innings. It was something of a good luck charm. Morgan had just, played the innings of his life. It just didn’t win the match against the Afghans, but it triggered an outpour of runs. Runs that came from the bat of the English batsmen. Morgan’s innings had become the shot in the arm his troops desperately required in the time of need. He was the leader, and they looked up to him.

Jason Roy played the similar innings against the mighty Kiwis in the semifinal. And that, as they say, was it. It was full speed ahead to Kolkata to face the Windies. Moreover, it would have taken something massive to wipe the grin across the face of Andrew Strauss. They had been led out of the turmoil and better yet, to the final of the World T20 final.

Eoin Morgan walked out a few meters ahead of his teammates. This time, the three lions were slightly above his heart. He had come a mighty long way from that afternoon at Lord’s all those years ago. He was dismissed for a first all duck as England let the World T20 title away from their grasp and into the hands of Darren Sammy’s West Indies. While Morgan braved the tears, he knew he had achieved something as England skipper.

Morgan remains an Irish citizen to this day. Whether he donned the Three Lions of England or the Shamrock Petals of Ireland, he had just accomplished something amazing. Something supercalifragilisticexpialidocious with his piece of willow. It certainly was much more than just the ‘Three Lions’ of England.