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ICC CRICKET WORLD CUP

July 10, 2019

Eoin Morgan

Birmingham, England, UK

Q. Is everybody fit?
EOIN MORGAN: Everybody is fit.

Q. What selection issues do you have, if any? Are you likely to be unchanged?
EOIN MORGAN: It depends on the groundsman's final preparation this afternoon. I haven't been able to look at the wicket since yesterday. He said he was going to take more grass off the wicket, but it looked good. It looked as good as the game that we played India here, so if it is, we'll try and select accordingly.

Q. If it is, you stick with Liam Plunkett?
EOIN MORGAN: Again, if he takes more grass off, if it looks like it is going to turn, that decision makes itself... If he takes more grass off and we feel it is going to turn, we will lean towards the spinner.

Q. You come into this game off the back of two wins, everyone is fully fit, and you are at a ground you have won the last ten at. You must be very confident?
EOIN MORGAN: I think probably more confident than we were three games ago. I think we are probably a different team that played four games ago and three games ago. I think the loss against Sri Lanka hurt us. It was an overhang into the Lord's game and then when we came here we managed to produce something similar to the cricket we have been playing over the last four years and that was really encouraging. We went to Durham to put in a better performance and improved again and tomorrow we will look to do the same.

Q. In terms of the Edgbaston crowd, they are quite loud, Australia are your big rivals. Can they help you against Australia tomorrow?
EOIN MORGAN: I think that is part and parcel of being the hosts, a little bit of home advantage. I think it plays a part here at Edgbaston. There is a reason we do have a lot of success here. The wicket tends to suit us but also the support as well.

Q. Finally from me, Glenn Maxwell, some doubt over his selection. What do you make of him? Is he a danger man in your eyes for Australia?
EOIN MORGAN: He is and has been for a long time. We are presuming he's playing. We are just preparing for all 15 to play. Whatever team they come at us with, hopefully we've picked, I suppose, the best plans and the best team to counter that.

Q. Chris Woakes, ten wickets so far, one brilliant catch. No-one loves playing here at Edgbaston against Australia more than Chris?
EOIN MORGAN: He's outstanding player. He's been a key player for us for a long time now, not only with the ball in the first ten overs, but with the bat. On numerous occasions, he's delivered when we've been four or five down early and he's had a part to play, so he's a key player for us.

Q. The Australians will be worried about him, they will know everything about him?
EOIN MORGAN: They'll certainly know everything about him, like we will about their players. We have played each other a lot over the last two-and-a-half years or so, so yeah.

Q. When you look around your teammates today and look them in the face, what are you seeing? Are you seeing excitement, tension, focus? How do you describe it?
EOIN MORGAN: I suppose all of those things. I haven't seen them yet, we are training later on, but I think excitement probably should be the dominant one. Everybody is excited and has been the last couple of days to play this game. It's the semifinal of a World Cup.

I think the fact that throughout the group stages for a while getting through to this stage looked unlikely, or was called into question. I think that makes it more exciting for us.

Q. You have always tried to play cricket with a smile and a positive perspective. In a massive game like this, is it always possible?
EOIN MORGAN: Yes, it is, definitely. I think sometimes -- and I'm guilty of it -- you can lose sight of the fact the position that you are in and the fact you are living your dream. I don't think it is impossible to play with a smile on your face.

Q. You say you are preparing for all 15 to take to the field for Australia.
EOIN MORGAN: 16, they have an extra traveller I think as well.

Q. Well, Handscomb is already in. If they play Wade as well, that's two debutantes in this tournament. Is that something you can target Australia on, considering the magnitude of this game?
EOIN MORGAN: No, we tend not to target individuals unless somebody is having a really bad day on the day. We tend to target the team as a whole and particularly a side as strong as Australia. I don't think you can find any one particular weakness a day out and say tomorrow we are going to predict this is going to happen because the majority of the time you get it wrong.

Q. The two left-armers shared nine wickets at Lord's. What did you not get right that day and what have you done subsequently and how will your approach to them differ this time around?
EOIN MORGAN: Losing wickets early hurt us. I don't think we were anywhere near playing our best cricket. On top of that, there was a hangover from the Sri Lanka game and I think since then, we have played against quality bowling line-ups and overcome them.

One of them obviously being a left-armer, Trent Boult. So to counter that, that is all we can do, we can practice as much as we can against left-armers, but we need to deliver tomorrow.

Q. Sometimes you see batsmen who are dropped in an innings -- and you have experienced this -- and it seems to free them to go on and just make the most of their second life. Is that kind of what it feels, a bit like when you were talking about having that fear when you had those losses and now you have almost got this freedom to go for it?
EOIN MORGAN: I don't think it was fear, I think it was a sense of missed opportunity. I think Sri Lanka was a game we felt we could have won and should have won, but let ourselves down and that had an overhang into the Australia game. Sorry what was the second question?

Q. Is it the same sort of sense when you are dropped early in an innings and it frees you a little bit knowing you maybe came close to not making it?
EOIN MORGAN: Maybe a little bit. I think we are obviously thankful that we are still in the tournament and that wasn't the last two games of the group stage to go through. But it just feels like we are back to the team that we are, yeah.

Q. Aaron Finch said he is going to take his mind off the things tomorrow by watching a film. Is there anything that you or the rest of team will do differently tonight to ease the nerves before the pressure?
EOIN MORGAN: Not differently. If I find anybody is doing anything differently, I would be upset. We have prepared for moments like this. We have played in crunch games, not semifinals, they have been to win a series, so guys will be doing their own things. Some guys will be on the Xbox, some guys will play golf, some will go to the cinema. So yes, doing what they normally do.

Q. You spoke about excitement, what about tension? Given how much England wants this title, do you feel that you will take on the expectations of the nation at all given where we are in the tournament at this point?
EOIN MORGAN: I think we have throughout the tournament and we have thoroughly enjoyed it. The support we have had throughout the tournament has been unbelievable and certainly something I have never experienced in my life. The amount of good faith and goodwill going around is fantastic, so we sense the support that's with us, but also the opportunity as well.

Q. Just wondering about the Australian team selections and whether you take any notice of the fact that Justin Langer has said Peter Handscomb is playing and the rumours about Matt Wade, do you take them at face value, or do you think the Australians are playing games?
EOIN MORGAN: I will wait for the toss tomorrow.

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