England’s Harry Brook has suggested his side were "a little bit careful" after a significant collapse against the West Indies in the T20 World Cup, though he dismissed concerns about their ability to bat against spin in Asia.
The team stumbled dramatically from 74 for one in pursuit of 197, ultimately reaching 141 for seven as slow left-armers Gudakesh Motie and Akeal Hosein, alongside off-spinner Roston Chase, claimed all six wickets after the powerplay in Mumbai.
Sam Curran, who had previously rescued England with the ball against Nepal, was left stranded on an unbeaten 43 as England were bowled out for 166, losing by 30 runs.
This initial defeat in the T20 World Cup has reignited familiar questions regarding England’s proficiency against spin on the subcontinent.
However, Brook pointed to recent white-ball victories in Sri Lanka as evidence of their capability.
When asked if his batters struggled against slow bowlers in the region, Brook responded: "No, I don’t think so. That series against Sri Lanka showed that, I thought we played spin really well out there. We’ve just had a bad day today."
Brook, however, included himself among those batters who afforded the West Indies spin trio excessive respect, rather than adopting a more aggressive approach.
The Yorkshireman expressed frustration at offering a tame catch off Motie, a fate also suffered by Tom Banton, and conceded that England’s deep batting line-up should have encouraged more attacking play against the spinners.
"We were probably a little bit careful, myself included," Brook stated. "With the power and depth we have, we do think we can chase almost anything. Obviously today we didn’t. I’d much rather get caught on the boundary than the way I did today.
“They bowled well, kept themselves in the game the whole time and we lost quite a few wickets in clusters which never really helps. Chasing nearly 200 is always a big ask and we thought the pitch would get a little bit better and it slide on to the bat a little bit more, but that didn’t happen."
Despite Adil Rashid’s impressive return of two for 16, conceding no boundaries after a challenging outing against Nepal, most of his teammates struggled to contain the West Indies.
Jofra Archer leaked 48 runs from his four overs, following 42 conceded against Nepal, though Sherfane Rutherford was dropped off his bowling on 23 before going on to score 76 of the West Indies’ 196 for six.
Brook, however, maintained confidence in Archer, saying: "No, not really. Everybody knows how good Jof is – he’ll bounce back for sure. He’s bowling rapid and I’m sure he’ll execute better in the coming games. We didn’t quite execute well enough with the ball and they probably got 20 too many."
He lauded Rashid’s performance, adding: "(But Rashid was) unbelievable. That’s the Rash everybody knows and loves. His skill and nous out there was unreal to watch."
England now face a crucial period, needing to win their final two Group C matches against Scotland on Saturday and Italy on Monday, both in Kolkata, to almost certainly secure their progression to the Super Eights.
Brook concluded: "We won against Nepal, otherwise it would’ve been a tricky situation. We play Scotland and Italy next and we have to do our homework and get back to basics."
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