Liam Livingston was the fastest English player in a century in international cricket in a T20 match against Pakistan in 2021. Credit: Reuters/Andrew Boyers
On Tuesday, Liam Livingston returns to Trent Bridge, where he spent his finest hour in an England shirt. And it took him exactly an hour, 62 minutes in fact, to launch a staggering 42-ball century, the fastest ever by an English in international cricket, against Pakistan at T20 two years ago.
This opportunity completed a dizzying the ascent of Livingston. Two days later he became the first player to score a six in the huge new Headingley stand, and the following month he easily became the top scorer in the first season of the men's hundred.
Livingston became one of them. one of the most intimidating strikers on the planet, which, combined with strong on-field play and very skilled spin bowling, saw him sell for around £1.15 million at the 2022 IPL auction. He broke into England's white balls, which were notoriously hard to crack.
Back at Trent Bridge, Livingston and England would want nothing more than a repeat of his brilliant performance in 2021. He is on their provisional team for the World Championship as one of two lower-intermediate spin bowling all-rounders along with vice-captain Moin Ali. But there's a shortage of seats due to Harry Brook's brilliant form, and Moin is the latest high-profile person to hint at things to come.
«He's unlucky enough to miss the game, but judging by the way he's playing, he can come back, you never know,” said Moin. «Playing for a team is a big headache and I'm sure the captain and coaches feel the same way.»
At times like these, players need to rely on more than just their reputation to keep themselves safe. a seat on the plane, not to mention the team.
Brook would not be a full-fledged replacement for Livingston. Brook is an excellent batsman, but Livingston is what Markus Treskotik, the assistant coach, called a «package»; he could be a sensational ODI batsman (and has great IPL results) and he plays spin which is always a bonus in India.
Moreover, he also rotates the ball in both directions, freeing him from «matches». He can serve offies to lefties and leggings to righties, and generally does a decent job; he took a wicket in each of the first three T20s, but hit a terrible blow on Sunday. However, in that game, Moin was bowled out because New Zealand had right-handers in the crease. This does not happen with Livingston.
One of the reasons Brook is off the lineup now is because he hasn't played much in ODIs. Three, to be exact. Livingston only made 12 appearances, none last year, due to a combination of test calls and injury. When he played, building innings from the bottom up, which wasn't easy, was no easy task. He has the only ODI of half a century to his credit – a runaway unbeaten run of 66-of-28, while England scored 498 against the Netherlands last year – but in his short career he was prone to crashes in the twenties and thirties, misjudging the moment and leading to failure. T20 pace in ODI game. He often seemed to have more time than he thought.
That doesn't mean Livingston will be able to work on his 50+ man cricket in the inside game because the Metro Bank Cup is facing the Hundred. He last played a non-ODI List A game in May 2019. Since then, he has played 141 local T20 games for teams around the world. Since June 2021, he has not played in 50-ball innings in any format of the game, partly because he has slipped down the ranks in T20 (he was once a rookie, but in one game for Lancashire in Vitality Blast in this year).
Livingston's diet is now almost entirely T20, but as they are set to fight No. 6 or 7 Moin, England need supplies for the World Cup. His bowling is very handy and helps to balance the team while Ben Stokes plays as a batsman. But this is not indispensable. If Brook had come in instead of Livingston, Joe Ruth could have made extra overs and Stokes could have possibly made one or two overs. One of Jason Roy or David Malan could step out in place of Brook, and Livingston would provide cover for a boosted top seven.
Treskotik acknowledged that Brook's situation may have caused «anxiety» among batsmen. , including Livingston, who has a nonchalant air but perhaps lacks the swagger that stood out in 2021.
Treckart went out of his way to give him heartfelt support, saying, «He'll come well, I have no doubt about it,” adding that a single hit can get a player back in shape. With mounting pressure on the venues and a return to the less familiar ODI format later this week, now is the time — and there's no better place — for that to happen.
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