Eoin Morgan gives an update on his and Sam Billings' injuries
England captain Eoin Morgan gave an update on his and Sam Billings' injuries in a press conference after the conclusion of the 1st ODI against India. Both players were injured while fielding in this match.
Sam Billings injured himself in the 33rd over of the game while trying to prevent a boundary. In the process, he hurt his left shoulder and was seen wincing in pain immediately and walked off the field.
Eoin Morgan, meanwhile, hurt himself around the 40th over of the innings when he tried to stop a powerful drive from Hardik Pandya. He split the webbing between his right thumb and index finger and took four stitches on his hand.
"Can I ask you about your injury? You have a charred hand, but you came out to bat. Is it something that you are able to play comfortably with?" a reporter asked.
In his reply, Eoin Morgan said that he isn't certain about how bad the injury is yet. He suggested that both of these players would wait for a while to see how things pan out.
"Ah, we are going to wait (for) 48 hours and see how it is. I split my webbing and Sam (Billings) had a knock on the collarbone. So, we are going to wait a while," Eoin Morgan answered.
Eoin Morgan added that fielding will be a problem for both these players with the injuries they've sustained in the first ODI.
"I think, two different instances. Obviously, when you have a split webbing, fielding is a concern. And with Sam, landing while he is fielding and playing a few shots.
Eoin Morgan looks to provide opportunities to the youngsters in the squad
Apart from those who played in the series opener, England have the likes of Liam Livingstone, Reece Topley and Matthew Parkinson in their ODI squad for this series.
Eoin Morgan seems to be in favor of providing these youngsters with a chance in the next two games. He mentioned ODI cricket had been a vehicle for England to strengthen their reserves.
"Absolutely. We are going to give a majority of the players in our squad an opportunity to play. 50-over cricket, for us, has been a vehicle to grow our squad and try to improve beyond our best 11 players on the field. So, there will be opportunities for guys coming in," he added.
If either Sam Billings or Eoin Morgan don't recover before the next match on March 26, Liam Livingstone might get his opportunity. England might even have to pull out Dawid Malan from the reserves if both the players can't get fit in time.
Malan, along with Chris Jordan and Jake Ball, is traveling with the team even though he isn't a part of the squad.