T20 WC: England's Brook ready for India's spinners on turning pitch

Ahead of the T20 WC semi-final against India, England skipper Harry Brook expressed confidence in his side's ability to play on turning pitches and tackle India's spinners. He also defended struggling opener Jos Buttler's place in the team.

Ahead of his side's T20 World Cup semifinal clash against India, England skipper Harry Brook expressed confidence in England's ability to play on turning, spin-friendly pitches. For the third time in a row, England and India will be locking horns for a spot in the ICC T20 World Cup final after the 2022 and 2024 editions. Brook's men, who have eked out several close wins in this tournament by showcasing a lot of grit, character and fight throughout their run despite Phil Salt-Jos Buttler's poor run, could be tested by India's frontline spinner Varun Chakravarthy and all-rounder Axar Patel.

'We have confidence on turning pitches'

Speaking during the pre-match presser, Brook spoke of his side's strong outing against Sri Lanka before the World Cup, where they secured the ODI series by 2-1 and the T20I series by 3-0 and later on also beat the Lankan Lions in their T20 World Cup Super Eight clash comprehensively, bowling them out for 95 in chase of 147 runs. He also spoke on the challenge of facing the world number one-ranked bowler, Varun Chakravarthy, who dismissed Brook thrice in the five-match T20I series in India last year. Brook said during the presser, "I feel like England always get a bad rap about playing against spin. We have gone to Sri Lanka, and we have won six games in a row against the subcontinent side, who are very good in their own backyard, and we have got a lot of confidence playing on turning pitches. Chakravarthy is one of the best bowlers in the world, and I will try my best to face him and score as many runs as I can against him."

The young right-hander's strike rate and average against spin have also improved. This year, he has scored at an average of 34.2 and a strike rate of 159.8 against spin, as compared to his career average of 20.9 and a strike rate of 140.8 against spinners.

Brook backs struggling Buttler

He also backed struggling opener Jos Buttler, who has managed just 62 runs in seven innings with just two scores above 20, asking that he be left alone. "I think leaving him alone is probably the best thing to do. He's been a powerhouse of a cricketer for many years, as we've all seen. I have been asked this question thousands of times now, and I just think there should be no reason to question why he is in the team," he added. (ANI)

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