"He was ahead of his time in realising the value to English cricket of the IPL" - Nasser Hussain on Eoin Morgan

Former England captain Nasser Hussain has hailed Eoin Morgan's impact in transforming the fortunes of English white ball cricket following reports of his impending retirement from international cricket. Hussain credited Morgan for making English cricket realize the value of the IPL and encouraging players to participate in it.

Unlike in the first few years of the IPL, more and more English players have begun partaking in the lucrative league in recent years. Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff were the first set of English players in the competition, bagging contracts in 2009.

In his column for the Daily Mail, Hussain said that Morgan deserves credit for improving the likes of Jos Buttler, Liam Livingstone, Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy by encouraging them to play in the IPL.

"He was also ahead of his time, along with Kevin Pietersen, in realising the value to English cricket of the IPL. First, he helped make better players of the likes of Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy and Liam Livingstone. Then he encouraged them to play in the IPL, where they learned to be even better."

Hussain also lauded the veteran's composed and calm nature as captain, evident by his handling of Jofra Archer in the 2019 World Cup final. He feels Morgan has been a much-improved captain since the 2016 World T20 decider, saying:

"As an on-field captain, he was cool, calm and calculated. He was icy-cold. Like all the best leaders, he had a presence. And the one time he didn't get things right, he learned from it. So when it came to Jofra Archer’s super over against New Zealand at Lord’s in the 50-over final in 2019, Morgan made sure he spoke to his bowler after he began with a tight wide."

The 35-year-old, who succeeded Alastair Cook as the white ball captain, is widely expected to announce his international retirement on Tuesday. The decision comes following his poor form across international and domestic cricket, scoring only one half-century across 48 innings since the start of 2021. The left-hander registered consecutive ducks in the first two ODIs against the Netherlands.

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"Buttler is the perfect replacement" - Nasser Hussain

Nasser Hussain (Image Credits: Getty)

Hussain also opined that keeper-batter Jos Buttler is the perfect successor, as he could keep Morgan's work going. The former England captain added:

"Buttler is the perfect replacement. He and Morgan are close friends, and he’s stepped in the Morgan way of doing things. He'll have no problem in replicating his style of play. And there's no greater compliment than that."

Buttler, who will likely take over from Morgan, captained England in the final ODI against the Netherlands. He also earned the 'Player of the Series' award for his explosive batting throughout the series.