Amid reports of Matthew Mott stepping down from England’s white-ball coaching role, Eoin Morgan has shut down suggestions that he could take over the role.
The Times reported that England’s current head coach in white-ball cricket is set to leave his role following uninspiring performances in the ODI World Cup and the T20 World Cup, held in the span of eight months. England entered both events as the defending champions but could not leave a mark, failing to progress beyond the first round in the 50-over event and bowing out in the semi-finals last month in the T20 World Cup.
Mott took over the white-ball sides from Chris Silverwood in 2022 for two years and led the team to the T20 World Cup in Australia that year. However, since then, performances have declined with England winning just one T20I bilateral series. They also lost ODI series’ in Australia, South Africa, and the West Indies.
Morgan: The timing is not right
Asked on Sky Sports whether he would be eager to take over potentially from Mott, Morgan outright denied the possibility. “I've been asked a lot over the last couple of months about the role and whether I would take it on. My answer has simply been, that the timing for everything in my life at the moment is not right.
“Yes, I want to coach down the line, but I've got a young family and I spend a lot more time at home. I'm loving what I'm doing, watching cricket through this.”
Earlier, Morgan had rallied around Mott and the white-ball skipper Jos Buttler, urging them to continue in their respective roles. Speaking on Wisden Cricket Monthly, he had said: “I do think Jos and Motty should stay on. Given they came into the tournament with the least amount of expectation, they made the semi-final and you have to acknowledge that.
"You shouldn’t take that for granted – it’s not a given you can get there, with the likes of Australia not making it and New Zealand being knocked out in the group stage. There were various challenges other teams couldn’t overcome and England did, so a lot of credit has to go to both of them in that instance.
“One thing that will be flagged is that they only beat West Indies out of the Full Member nations but, still, they managed to get to a semi-final. So, for me, Mott and Buttler stay in their positions, particularly when I don’t see any obvious replacements. Giving them more time to get better and grow is the decision that should be made.”
England’s next white-ball series is against Australia in September, where they will play three T20Is and as many ODIs.
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