England will not miss Kevin Pietersen in the ICC World T20 2012, says Glenn Maxwell – Cricket News Update
Extremely impressed by England’s recent performances in limited-over cricket, Glenn Maxwell, the all-rounder from Australia, thinks that the Poms have a massive chance of defending the ICC World T20 2012, which commences tomorrow in
Sri Lanka.
England defeated Australia in the final of the previous mega-event to lift a global trophy for the first time in their history (having not won any major ICC tournament in past) on the back of some exceptional performances from Kevin
Pietersen, who was named the Player of the Tournament in 2010.
However, KP is not a part of the current squad due to his differences with the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), and many believe that the Poms will greatly miss their best batsmen.
Despite holding a similar view regarding Pietersen, Maxwell believes that Stuart Broad and company still remain a force to be reckoned with without their star batsman.
"England has been a bit of a powerhouse. KP is one of the world's best players but they've been able to cover for him pretty well," Maxwell said. "I don't think they're going to miss him too much."
The Aussie cricketer himself emerged at the international stage during the recently concluded limited-over series against Pakistan in United Arab Emirates (UAE), impressing one and all with his stunning stroke-play. Maxwell, who is
also a handy off-spinner, possesses the ability to contribute in all three facets of the game.
The 23-year-old cricketer is a great fan of Eoin Morgan, and has further described the Ireland-born English batsman as a proven match-winner.
Praising England’s strong bowling attack in the presence of Broad himself, Jade Dernbach, Steven Finn, Tim Bresnan and Graeme Swann, the Aussie all-rounder gave credit to David Saker, the bowling coach.
"Their middle order is quite strong. Eoin Morgan gives them amazing versatility, he's a great finisher and a really tough player to get out. Their bowling attack is excellent. They've got a great bowling coach in David Saker who has
drilled them really well," he added.
England is placed in Group A along with India and Afghanistan, and will play the latter in their opening fixture on September 21st at Colombo.