Teams have realised England can win from any position, says Chris Woakes
Sep 16, 2020
Manchester [UK], September 16 : England all-rounder Chris Woakes has said that teams across the world have now realised that the Three Lions can win matches from any situation.
His remark comes as England and Australia get ready to lock horns in the third and final ODI of the three-match series. Currently, the series is levelled at 1-1.
England defended a score of 231 in the second ODI and the hosts managed to bundle out Australia for 207 as Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer, and Sam Curran scalped three wickets each.
"Over the last five years we've earned that respect, I think. Across that period, teams have realised that we can win from any position and the game is not done until they get over the line. We've found that in this series and also in the T20 series, so we've earned that respect. Within the dressing room, we've got that character and the belief that we can win from any position," ESPNCricinfo quoted Woakes as saying.
"A few years ago we probably thought we could only win from a tricky position with the bat chasing, but now we feel like we can do it with the ball as well. I don't really see why that should change. The other night was brilliant. A different role for us to play to come back and attack and take wickets rather than hold overs back for the death," he added.
Marnus Labuschagne and Aaron Finch had managed to retrieve the innings for Australia in the second ODI. The duo put on 107 runs for the third wicket, but England staged a remarkable comeback as the side dismissed Labuschagne (48), Mitchell Marsh (1), Aaron Finch (73), and Glenn Maxwell (1) in quick succession, reducing Australia to 147/6.
Woakes got the crucial breakthroughs of Finch, Maxwell, and Labuschagne while Archer dismissed Mitchell Marsh.
"It was a completely different game in comparison to a normal ODI so I'm really pleased how we pulled that back and took the attack to Australia and put them on the back foot. It was the only way we were going to win that game," Woakes said.
"We're in a great position as a team. I think there have been times in this series where we feel we haven't played our best cricket across the two games so hopefully, we can put in a big performance and bring it all together in the last one, because there are areas of our game that haven't been quite as sharp as we would like them to be," he added.
With this win, England levelled the three-match series at 1-1. Both sides will now lock horns in the third and final ODI of the series on Wednesday, September 16.