This story is from January 31, 2019

Desire to play more T20 cricket affecting players development, says England Lions coach Andy Flower

After England Lions eked out a face-saving win in the final match of the series, Andy Flower took positives out of the performance of some of his boys.
Desire to play more T20 cricket affecting players development, says England Lions coach Andy Flower
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THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The bowling riches of India 'A' were at display in their 4-1 one-day series win over England Lions. Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar and Siddarth Kaul operated at good speeds and moved the ball around.
"The quality of their seam bowling stood out. Their national team is away and we saw the next lot of Indian seamers coming through. There were some impressive performances.
Generally, they were consistent and bowled some good bouncers. They were accurate, fit and strong," said Andy Flower.
After England Lions eked out a face-saving win in the final match of the series, Flower took positives out of the performance of some of his boys. "Sam Billings' hundred in the first game was brilliant. He captained well. His knowledge of Indian conditions helped. Nice to see Ben Duckett embrace the responsibility as the main batsman to finish off the chase in this match. Danny Briggs has been very steady with the ball. Lewis Gregory was good with the new ball and was reliable at the end. Jamie Overton had a couple of good spells in the last two matches," said Flower.
The Lions could have utilized the services of experienced players like Jason Roy and Alex Hales but for their stints in the ongoing Bangladesh Premier League. While Flower did not criticize the players' decision to choose franchise cricket, he subtly drove home his message.
"We are all asking questions about how franchise cricket is going to mix with international cricket in the near future. The ICC has some interesting and responsible decisions to make in that regard. From an English perspective, some of the players we wanted to select on the tour haven't come because they want to play franchise cricket. The desire to make your way in T20 cricket is affecting some of the boys and how they develop as cricketers," said the 50-year-old former Zimbabwe captain.
Ultimately, it boils down to individual preferences, feels Flower. "These are tricky decisions. Whether someone wants to play a Lions tour where they are not earning much in terms of money but a lot in terms of learning experience or a franchise league where they can make a lot of money," Flower added.
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