Morgan flies to the rescue for England

IF you can’t beat them join them is the message from England as they called up Dublin’s Eoin Morgan into their World Cup squad yesterday as a replacement for the injured Kevin Pietersen – just days after suffering defeat at the hands of the Irish.

Morgan, regarded as England’s top one-day batsman, thought he had missed out on the showpiece in the sub-continent after breaking a finger on England’s tour of Australia in January. However, the injury has healed quicker than expected and he has been summoned to replace Pietersen, who will now return home to undergo hernia surgery.

An alumnus of Dublin’s Catholic University School, Morgan played for Ireland at the 2007 World Cup but switched to England in 2009 after developing his game with Middlesex. He has also starred in the lucrative Indian Premier League with Bangalore Royal Challengers.

England coach Andy Flower broke the news of Pietersen’s injury yesterday. He said: “It’s unfortunate for Kev. But we’ve got Eoin, who is a proven performer in this form of the game. We’re glad to have him. We’re moving on now, and Eoin Morgan is an exciting cricketer. It’s going to be good to have him back.”

England repaired some of the damage done by that defeat to Ireland by beating South Africa on Sunday, and with Morgan back in the fold they will now be confident of reaching the quarter-finals.

They face Bangladesh on Friday in Group B while Ireland, who lost to co-hosts India by five wickets on Sunday, take on the West Indies. Ireland’s heroics so far at the World Cup have seen them move into 10th place in the latest official one-day rankings, while Trent Johnston is ranked 12th best among the world’s bowlers.

In yesterday’s battle of the Group A minnows, Canada beat Kenya by five wickets in Delhi.

Today, Pakistan face New Zealand in Pallekele (Sky Sports 1, 9am).