World Cup 2019: 5 players of non-English origin representing England at the tournament

We are two games away from crowning the winner of the 12th edition of ICC Cricket World Cup. After 45 league matches, we reached the semi-finals with four high-quality teams – India, Australia, England, and New Zealand.

The first semi-final between India and New Zealand will arguably go down as one of the best matches in the history of the World Cup semi-finals. After clinching a nail-biting win against India, New Zealand will head into the final with full of confidence. New Zealand’s opponent for the final will be declared today with the second semi-final contest between Australia and England.

England has a long history of players from other countries representing their national cricket team. Ahead of their semi-final match, let us look at five players of non-English origin who are currently a part of this year’s England World Cup squad.

#5 Tom Curran

Tom Curran is one among the young, exciting pacers in the England cricket team. Along with Tom, his brother, Sam Curran, is also the latest young sensation in the International arena. Ben Curran, who is also a brother of Tom, is an upcoming talent in the county cricket. Kevin Curran, the former Zimbabwe cricketer, is the father of the three Curran brothers.

Born in Cape Town, Tom spent his early days in the Cape Province. After getting impressed by Tom’s school cricket skills, Ian Greig, the former Surrey skipper, invited Tom to play second XI cricket for Surrey in 2012. The rest is history as Tom created a name for himself in domestic cricket.

He made his International debut for England in a T20I against South Africa in 2017. Soon, he made his debut in the other formats too in that same year. Though Tom is a part of England’s World Cup squad, he is yet to play a game in this World Cup.

Also see – Australia vs England head to head stats

#4 Jason Roy

Just like Tom Curran, Jason Roy is also based on South Africa. Born in Durban, Roy moved to England at the age of 10 along with his family. In 2008, he made his debut for Surrey at the age of 17. Soon, he was moved to the second team because of his inconsistent performances. In 2010, he was promoted to the first team again.

It took several years for Roy to find his feet in the domestic arena. In the 2014 NatWest T20 Blast, he topped the runs chart by scoring 677 runs in 15 innings. Besides, in the 2014 County Championship Division Two, he scored 1042 runs in 16 matches.

Roy’s successful T20 Blast campaign helped him to make his International debut for England in a T20I against India in 2014. In the following year, he made his ODI debut against Ireland. Soon, along with Jonny Bairstow and Alex Hales, Roy formed a group of explosive openers for England in the ODIs.

In the ongoing World Cup, Roy has smashed 341 runs in five innings with the high score of 153. Roy will look to carry on his excellent form to the semi-final and help England beat their archrivals.

Also see – World cup head to head stats

#3 Jofra Archer

Jofra Archer was born in Barbados to an English father. He played for West Indies U19 in 2013. A back injury ended his career in West Indies. Once he was dropped from Barbados, he moved to England and played for Sussex’s second team on the recommendation of Chris Jordan.

It took very less time for Sussex to identify the talent of Archer. In 2016, he made debut for Sussex in all the three formats and displayed his full potential in the domestic arena. Soon, he earned T20 stints in two of the World’s best T20 leagues - Big Bash League and Indian Premier League.

According to the older rules of England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), Archer was initially not eligible to represent England until the winter of 2022. However, ECB changed their rules last year to fast track Archer into the International arena. As a result, Archer became eligible to represent England in this year’s World Cup.

Archer made his ODI debut for England only a few weeks before the start of the World Cup against Ireland in May 2019. In the World Cup, Archer has lived up to the promises and claimed 17 wickets in nine matches.

Also see – Man of the match world cup 2019

#2 Ben Stokes

Born in Christchurch, Ben Stokes moved to England at the age of 12. Stokes made his debut for Durham in a List A match against Surrey in May 2009. In his third delivery, he dismissed the former England cricketer, Mark Ramprakash. Ever since Stokes career graph slowly started to improve, he was compared with Ian Botham, an England and Durham legendary all-rounder.

Stokes made his England debut in an ODI against Ireland in August 2011. In the same year, he made his T20I debut against West Indies. After a long wait, he made his Test debut in the 2013-14 Ashes series. In the last few years, Stokes is one of the mainstays in the England team in all three formats.

Currently, Stokes is one of the leading all-rounders in the International arena. In the ongoing World Cup, Stokes has scored 381 runs in nine matches with four 50+ scores. With the ball, he has taken seven wickets in nine games with an economy rate of 4.65.

Also see – World cup 2019 highlights

#1 Eoin Morgan

It is safe to say that hardly anyone in England would have imagined the fact that the leading run-scorer for England in ODIs will be an Irishman. Born in Dublin, Eoin Morgan played International cricket for Ireland in his initial days. He even played an ODI against England representing Ireland in the 2007 World Cup.

Morgan’s longtime dream of playing for England came true in 2009. He made his England debut in an ODI against West Indies in May 2009. In the following month, he made his T20I debut against the Netherlands. Finally, he made his much-awaited Test debut in May 2010 against Bangladesh.

Ever since the 2015 World Cup, Morgan is leading the England team in the limited-overs format. Along with Trevor Bayliss, the England head coach, Morgan broke the traditions and changed the entire approach towards the limited-overs format. Under his reign, England has become a dominant team in the ODIs in the past four years. Besides, after a long time, England has reached the semi-finals of the World Cup under his captaincy.

Also see – Highest Individual Score in World cup