Harry Brook previews England's must-win USA super8's
22/06/2024
Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet
22/06/2024
Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium, Gros Islet
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00:00Well batted, Harry. How were you seeing that run chase when you and Livi came together?
00:07There was a real lack of boundaries and there wasn't a hell of a lot of time for you to
00:13get on top of it.
00:14I think when the score is double the amount of balls, I think it's about time you need
00:19to try and put the foot down at that point. We tried to push the accelerator but we did
00:26it well for a while but couldn't see the game home, unfortunately.
00:30Did you think there was a moment when you'd tipped yourselves into favourites, whether
00:34it was maybe three overs to go?
00:37Yes, when Livi took Bartlett down I definitely thought we were the favourites there. Obviously
00:44it only takes one wicket from there to change things. There's a new batter coming in on
00:49them pitches with a soft ball into that breeze. It's not easy but we should have probably
00:55won from that position.
00:58Looking ahead now to the final game, I guess it's not entirely in your own hands as you
01:04would have liked it to be but I suppose you're almost in a position that you were at the
01:09end of the first group stage, which is just get your win and sit back and cross your fingers.
01:14Yes, exactly. That's the main thing. We've got to win and then obviously see how we go
01:19on net run rate. The main thing is to definitely get that win.
01:25The previous two games against the Associates, Oman and Namibia, you put in a really strong
01:30performance. Is that something that you can look at with a bit of confidence heading into
01:34the USA, whether you have managed to exert yourselves on a position like that?
01:39Yes, absolutely. We've played quite a lot in Barbados over the last six months or so.
01:46We know the conditions, we know the wind and we know the pitch as well. Hopefully we can
01:51go out there and give them a good battering.
01:53Cheers.
01:55Thank you. We've all noticed how much quicker and slimmer you are, but you look quite uncomfortable
02:05at times there. Are you able to tell us how difficult it is in this heat?
02:09I need to get some air coming in here first. Obviously it was really hot out there. Fielding
02:16was tough work as well, running from side to side. It was very hot and you had to just
02:23keep on trying to push.
02:25Is that something that's difficult to get used to?
02:28What? The heat?
02:30Yes, the heat, particularly here.
02:31Yes, well, we should be used to it by now, but it was extremely hot out there today.
02:38And how different was the surface to the one from a couple of days ago? Obviously it looks
02:43very similar, but it seemed to be a lot more difficult to time the ball.
02:46Yes, I didn't bat on that last pitch obviously, but the lads said that this pitch was a little
02:50bit slower. The ball at the end felt really soft as well, so it must have been a fairly
02:55abrasive pitch. Yes, it was slow, but I feel like they bowled well the last three overs.
03:04Harry, could I just ask about the couple of scoops you played? Does it sort of feel to
03:08you like that almost unlocks other scoring options because they had to bring mid-off
03:12up and obviously you went over there?
03:14Yes, absolutely. It only takes one or two to get away and I feel like it should be an
03:19easy boundary. I obviously missed a couple, but yes, you only need to get a little bit
03:24of bat on it, it's full.
03:25Is that sort of one of the factors, though, the fact that they then changed the field
03:29and then sent fine leg back the reason why you play it?
03:31Yes, absolutely.
03:34Hi Harry, congratulations for the English team. You played a brilliant knock today in
03:40such a great heat and a great game of cricket we have seen. Just tell me that England and
03:47South Africa, was the basic difference was the power play where you did lose the game?
03:51Was it the crunch factor, the power play where they did I think above 60 runs? Was it the
03:58turning point?
04:00No, I don't think so. I think when I first came in I chewed up a few balls. I was obviously
04:05on 20 off 20. Another day I get a couple of boundaries early on. I took a few risks with
04:11a reverse sweep and what not. If I get that away, then looking at 20 off 12-13 balls,
04:17it could change the game.
04:25Harry, how are you finding this World Cup? England's fortunes are sort of lurching one
04:29way and the other. How are you finding it and how is the team finding it, given that
04:33the stakes are pretty high?
04:35Yes, obviously. It's awesome to be involved in a World Cup. It's another dream come true,
04:39but we're defending champs and hopefully we can go out there and win it again, but
04:44we've just got to keep on nailing it. Obviously, we've got another must-win few games now.
04:51We did that in the last World Cup, we did it in the last group stage, so who's to say
04:56we can't do it again?
04:59Thanks. Can I just ask again, in the previous group stage when you had the Australia-Scotland
05:04game, did you guys all watch it together? Is there any routine you'll now have to follow
05:10to watch the last group game here and see that unfold?
05:14We watched in the bar in Antigua. Well, we were all knackered anyway, so I watched the
05:21first half and then went to bed and watched the second half in bed.
05:26It's going to be a bit of deja vu, though, to be sitting waiting for that late game to
05:29finish to find out how it goes?
05:30Yeah, absolutely. Keep a close eye on it, but we've got to concentrate on our game first.
05:34Thanks.
05:37Cheers, guys.