Yorkshire CCC look to reap T20 benefits from Adil Rashid and David Willey

MARTYN MOXON is confident that Adil Rashid and David Willey's ICC World Twenty20 squad call-ups will have positive spin-off effects for Yorkshire's NatWest T20 Blast campaign.
Yorkshire and Englands bowler Adil Rashid.Yorkshire and Englands bowler Adil Rashid.
Yorkshire and Englands bowler Adil Rashid.

The pair, along with county colleague Joe Root, ensure that the White Rose will have triple representation in the 14-man England party at the finals in India next month.

All three are currently in South Africa with England, who play T20 internationals in Cape Town and Johannesburg later this month and while the World Cup call-ups will mean that they must forego pre-season training with their Tykes colleagues in the Middle East, Moxon is looking at the bigger picture.

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Yorkshire’s director of professional cricket said: “They will miss pre-season training to Dubai and Abu Dhabi and I guess in an ideal world it would have nice for David to be in and amongst the lads as we have not seen him yet.

Yorkshire and England's David Willey.Yorkshire and England's David Willey.
Yorkshire and England's David Willey.

“But that can’t be helped as it’s a huge tournament for the lads to be involved in. We have just got to accept that from our point of view and hope the lads have a good tournament.

“I am not sure how much Rooty will play for us this season in the one-dayers, but Adil’s recent form in the Big Bash and in England’s one-day games has shown that he is performing really well now and has gained a lot of confidence.

“He’s in a really good place and David will improve our team as well and we are looking forward to them doing well and using their experiences when they play for us.”

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Rashid heads into the T20 finals on the back of some superb performances in the recent Big Bash League for Adelaide Strikers, which prompted England coach Trevor Bayliss to state that his experiences “could not have worked out any better.” while tipping him for a 10-year international career.

Yorkshire and England's David Willey.Yorkshire and England's David Willey.
Yorkshire and England's David Willey.

Rashid’s haul of 16 wickets made him the leading spin bowler in the tournament with his economy rate of 6.51 and strike rate of a wicket every 13 balls helping to earn him a place in the team of the tournament.

Willey, who played for rivals Perth Scorchers, also impressed with Moxon relishing the impact that both can have for Yorkshire after the county’s poor performance in the twenty-over format in the 2016 domestic campaign.

Moxon said: “It’s all experience and exposure for Adil and playing in such a high-profile competition has really brought the best out of him.

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“We have seen a growing maturity in Adil in the past couple of seasons, both as a person and a player and I think we are seeing someone who now has a presence about him that he possibly has not had in the past.

“He’s at the top of his game at the minute and hopefully that can continue.”

On Willey, he added: “David is a three-dimensional cricketer. He can open the innings and bowl at the top and the end of an innings and is good in the field as well.

“He’s a fantastic cricketer and a big part of the England team and will obviously be a big part of ours when he eventually gets to play for us.”

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Stuart Broad, meanwhile, is in line for a one-day international comeback – at the ground where he helped England pull off their shock Test series victory over South Africa.

Broad was omitted from England’s ICC World Twenty20 squad, but is set to be in action tomorrow as the tourists seek to clinch the ODI series at The Wanderers.

It was there that the 29-year-old took six wickets for 17 runs in the second innings as England won by seven wickets last month to take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the Test series, and knock South Africa off their world No 1 perch.

Bayliss has made it clear, as England bid to bounce back from Tuesday’s seven-wicket trouncing in Centurion to seal the ODI series in Johannesburg, that Broad is highly likely to return for his first white-ball match for his country since last year’s failed World Cup campaign.

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Broad was added to England’s squad in South Africa after injuries to Steven Finn and then Yorkshire’s Liam Plunkett, but has yet to figure in the middle in three matches so far.

Asked if he could be about to make his return, Bayliss said: “Yes. I think it is always on the cards for him to play some cricket on this tour, once he got selected.

“He has got that experience, and it will be good to have it – especially at the Wanderers, where he had that great success in the Test.”

Without Broad, the England attack which had fared well en route to two opening victories in the ongoing series, had no answer once Quinton de Kock and Hashim Amla got set in an opening stand of 239 at SuperSport Park – where South Africa comfortably chased a target of 318-8.

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Bayliss added: “Centurion hasn’t been a happy hunting ground on this tour, but Wanderers has been.

“So we hope we have a good feel about that next venue, and we can play well.”

Broad, who has taken 177 ODI wickets in 119 matches, is likely to replace either Chris Jordan or, possibly, Willey.