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Limited-overs captain Eoin Morgan believes the use of The Hundred as an excuse for England’s recent Ashes collapse is “ridiculous” and insists Test cricket “has always been a priority”.
England’s Test team suffered a 0-4 Ashes series defeat in Australia last week. They were completely beaten by the hosts in four games, while Chorut and his men narrowly drew in the fourth Test.
Morgan’s comments came after Test captain Root urged the ECB to “prioritize” his team following the Ashes defeat, suggesting too much attention has been paid to limited cricket since 2015.
“People who use that as an excuse don’t watch cricket,” Morgan told talkSPORT.
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“Test cricket has always been a priority – it’s the format of the game for our elite players. Obviously things are tough for Australia right now during the Ashes, but they always have. We’ve lost 4-0 already. The last two series,” he added.
Root advocates changing the domestic structure to allow for more red-ball matches in the height of summer, the ECB’s professional franchise 100-ball cricket tournament.
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“It’s ridiculous to point the finger at The Hundred. The Hundred has been incredibly successful,” Morgan said.
He added that the UK’s domestic structure was similar to Australia’s. “Our format in County Cricket and Hundreds, in the way they’re structured, is exactly the same as Australia’s.
“People need to blame something, so they might point out the furthest point from reality because no one wants to say, ‘You know what, we’re not ready for what we want, we’re probably not playing like we did’ would have been Liked, but we lost. “This happens in all formats but I stress that Test match cricket has always been a priority. “
Morgan is said to have secured a full squad for the past two years in preparation for the T20 World Cup, but the limited captain pointed out that white-ball teams are often not strong enough to field a full squad.
“As a white-ball team, we’ve played on tour and played series at home and we haven’t played to our full potential – that’s been a constant theme for years. Obviously Test matches are a priority and always It is so.”
Morgan also said that for “most” of his cricketing career, restricted cricket was secondary and an “afterthought”.
“… 95% of the time was spent planning and preparing for the Test cricket, and then when we got to the World Cup it was like, ‘Okay, if we do well, that’s great , but if we don’t, it’s okay’.
“With the level of skill that the players are improving now and proven over a long period of time, we are considered one of the best in the world. Trust me, I’d rather be considered than an afterthought,” he said. added.
England are scheduled to face West Indies in a five-match T20 series starting on Saturday.
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