ICC T20 World Cup 2022: "England is perhaps closest to covering all the bases" - Gautam Gambhir makes his predictions
A former World Cup winner and, currently, a part of the commentary panel in the ongoing T20 World Cup, Gautam Gambhir has backed England to go all the way and win the World Cup.
He feels that England have got all their bases covered while the rest of the teams lack in one department or the other.
England started off their World Cup campaign with a hard-fought victory against Afghanistan. They face Ireland in their second encounter, which is currently underway.
On top of a belligerent and power-packed batting line-up, England possess a strong bowling attack with variety. England’s only T20 World Cup triumph came way back in 2010.
In an interaction with the Lucknow Supergiants, Gambhir said:
“From the cricket point of view, whatever and however much I understand the game, as I mentioned to you a little earlier as well that England have a slight edge over rest of the other teams because they have got everything that you need to win the World Cup.”
He added:
"If they don’t play well, they don’t play well then they have to blame themselves but they have covered most of their bases. Probably all the other teams haven’t covered all their bases."
He further continued:
"England is perhaps closest to covering all of them because they have got bowling, they have got spin, they have firepower in their batting and the X factor. So I think, England probably still has an advantage.”
Our global mentor @GautamGambhir made some bold predictions about the #T20WorldCup! 🔮
Hear from the horse's mouth itself 😎
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England are one of the overwhelming favorites for the T20 World Cup
While England have genuine firepower at the top with the likes of Jos Buttler and Alex Hales as openers, they have stability in the form of Dawid Malan. At the back end, they have the power-hitting abilities of Liam Livingstone and Moeen Ali.
In Harry Brook, they have found a sensational teenager who has the ability to turn a match within seconds.
In the bowling department, England have pace in the form of Mark Wood, while Sam Curran and Chris Woakes can swing the ball both ways and trouble batters upfront.
Adil Rashid has been a standout performer for England in the shorter formats and will play a pivotal role for them. Moeen Ali and Livingstone add to the variety, which not many teams can boast of.
When asked to make predictions on the highest run-getter and the highest wicket-taker of the tournament, Gambhir named Quinton de Kock and Adam Zampa as his picks.