England nowhere near being favourites
England, who won the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean in 2010, wouldn't be favourites this time, opines Michael Vaughan in his column in the Telegraph
Abhishek Mukherjee
25-Feb-2013
England, who won the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean in 2010, wouldn't be favourites this time, opines Michael Vaughan in his column in the Telegraph. They would struggle in Sri Lankan pitches, their batting would be depleted without Kevin Pietersen, and if they pressurise themselves as defending champions, their campaign would be ruined, he says.
England have talent and confidence but they have always struggled in Sri Lanka and on Asian pitches so I would be amazed if they did anything spectacular. They will also miss Kevin Pietersen. I can’t believe anyone can suggest they will be better without him as this is the one format in which they miss him massively.
This time I hope England do not have big expectations just because they are champions. If they think about the fact they are champions it could affect them. I would go with a similar mentality to when they arrived in the Caribbean: confidence within the group but do not make that public.