Out-of-form Morgan is ruthless enough to drop Malan: Hussain

England skipper Eoin Morgan might be willing to drop himself for the betterment of his team but Nasser Hussain and Rob Key are against the idea and want him to lead from the front in the ongoing T20 World Cup, even if it comes at the expense of Dawid Malan. 

Morgan’s form is a huge concern for England. In the recently concluded Indian Premier League 2021, the left-hander only scored 133 runs in 17 matches at an average of 11.08 and a strike rate of 95.68. However, Morgan was outstanding in the captainship department and led Kolkata Knight Riders to the final despite being down and out in the first half of the tournament.  

"Morgan plays and captains. Even if he is not getting any runs, he plays and captains. He is a unique, streaky player who could turn up at the tournament and absolutely smash it. You only need to look at the IPL final to see how important captaincy is. Morgan and MS Dhoni - two of the greatest white-ball captains there have ever been," Hussain said on the Sky Sports Cricket Podcast.

"Kolkata were in shambles in the first leg of the IPL season but Morgan dragged them up into the final. Last year Chennai were a shambles but MS Dhoni has now dragged them to another title. It cannot be a coincidence that Dhoni and Morgan are always there in white-ball cricket."

Echoing the sentiments expressed by Hussain, Key said: "I think Morgan would leave himself out if, and the key word is if, he felt that was the right thing to do but I don't think he will.

"I think in this World Cup, with the conditions in the UAE, captaincy is going to be a big thing, so I would be happy for Morgan to play. If he comes in at No 6, he is pretty much there as captain who will be used every now and again with the bat, but I would play him. England then have decisions on the make-up of their team."

Malan might be the top-ranked T20I batter but Hussain and Key are concerned about the deliveries he eats up in the powerplay. Malan generally makes up in the second half of the innings but the conditions in the UAE might not allow him to bat with a similar approach.

"You could leave out Malan and have Moeen Ali at No 3, where he was used for Chennai, and personally I would leave out Malan. These pitches are going to be slow, the ball is not going to come on, and the powerplay is going to be absolutely vital. You cannot afford to have someone who is going to try and catch up,” said Key.

"That is what Malan will do a lot of the time. I would be wary of him eating up balls on occasion and leaving too much to do for the hitters down the end."

Hussain added: "I think Malan has earnt the right to be given first dibs at the No 3 role but we know how ruthless Morgan can be. You only need to ask David Willey, who was left out ahead of the 50-over World Cup, or Alex Hales, who Morgan says has broken trust.

"I know as a captain that it is easy to be ruthless when you are contributing and doing well, but can Morgan be just as ruthless when people are asking whether he is worth his place in the side? Can he say to the No. 1 batter in the world, 'we are going in a different direction?' He can be ruthless and he will be."