Livingstone feels T20I series against India 'massively important' ahead of T20 WC
Mar 10, 2021
Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], March 10 : England's Liam Livingstone believes that the upcoming T20I series against India is "massively important", given the ICC Men's T20 World Cup is scheduled to be played in India later in the year.
The International Cricket Council (ICC) in August last year confirmed that the T20 World Cup 2020 that was postponed due to COVID-19 will be held in Australia in 2022 and India will host the T20 World Cup 2021 as planned.
"Massively important. It gives us a great experience and a chance to work out the pitches. The stadium is new so, it will be great to see how it goes. We got pretty much a full-strengthed side against probably one of the best teams in the world. So, it will be a great test for us. Especially with the T20 World Cup coming, it will be a great experience," Livingstone said during a virtual press conference on Wednesday.
Livingstone also expressed his desire of becoming a "genuine all-rounder" for the team and said he is continuing to work on his bowling.
"I enjoy the challenge of becoming a better bowler. It has been nice to come over here and it will be great to work with Jeetan (Patel) over the next couple of weeks. It has been something I have worked really hard on over the last couple of years. It is something I am continuing to work on as it adds another string to my bow. Hopefully, in the next couple of years, I can try to turn myself into a genuine all-rounder," he said.
England is gearing up for the five-match T20I series against India, set to begin on Friday. India will be high on confidence as they defeated England 3-1 in the four-match Test series.