Morgan lauds England's ODI revival after reaching Cricket World Cup final

Eoin Morgan lauded England's remarkable ODI revival after his side reached the Cricket World Cup final four years after a humiliating group-stage exit.

An eight-wicket thrashing of Australia at Edgbaston on Thursday underlined England's quality, which is a long way removed from the abysmal displays they produced at the 2015 tournament.

Back then they missed out on the knockout phase after losing to Bangladesh, marking a low point for English cricket in the one-day game.

But on Sunday they will contest a Lord's final with New Zealand, which Morgan could not have foreseen after their miserable outing in Australia and New Zealand last time out.

"If you told me after the last World Cup that we'd reach the final I wouldn't have believed you," the captain told the BBC's Test Match Special.

"It sums up how far we have come in the last four years. Everyone should take a huge amount of credit.

"Today was close to a perfect performance, right from the two bowlers up front. Chris Woakes and Jofra Archer bowled a hell of a spell.

"They put pressure on with early wickets and allowed us to stay on the front foot."

#EoinMorgan and his England team have had a day to remember!#AUSvENG | #CWC19 | #WeAreEngland pic.twitter.com/WIzrkUTj0m
— Cricket World Cup (@cricketworldcup) July 11, 2019

Speaking on the field, Morgan also praised the fans who roared England on to victory, marking their third triumph in a row after consecutive wins over India and the Black Caps pulled the hosts back from the brink of another early exit.

"I would like to thank the fans – we've had unbelievable support and Edgbaston has always been very kind to us," he said.

"Having beaten India in the group stages here we would've come here with similar confidence. The way we have taken momentum from the last two group games into the semi-finals is very important.

"We set the tone early and when we got on top we made Australia pay."

Published 11 Jul 2019, 23:28 IST