Alex Hales insists a World Cup win on Sunday won’t complete an incredible cricketing redemption for him because it is not why he plays the game.
If any other player had made that claim you would be suspicious, but actually with Hales it seems entirely plausible. How else would he have even got here to a T20 World Cup final if he wasn’t able to park the past and move on with his life?
Regardless of the self-inflicted nature of it, to be axed from the 2019 World Cup squad on the eve of what would be a winning campaign for a recreational drugs ban was a devastating experience. “It eats at you inside, that you should have been part of it and you weren’t,” is how Hales described it.
To think that your chance of glory had gone and that England honours may never return again due to ‘trust’ issues is a deep hole to climb out of. Climb he did and through a combination of strong consistent domestic tournament form, a change of captain, a last minute injury to Jonny Bairstow, and a glowing reference from former coach Trevor Bayliss, the stars aligned.
Jos Buttler put his faith in a player he knew had the ability to thrive under the greatest pressure, and together they combined on the biggest stage to earn him a shot at a medal. And that is all he now wants. Not to prove people wrong, not to redeem himself, but just to play and win a World Cup final.
Asked whether his three years out of the side was worth it after reaching the final, Hales chuckled: “We'll see if we win it, I guess.
“To get the chance to play for England again in a time where I feel like I'm playing the best T20 cricket of my career is a great feeling. I'm keen to make the most of this chance, for sure. I don't think it is about redemption, no. That's not what's on my mind, to be honest, I'm just enjoying my cricket and enjoying being back in an England shirt.
“It's not why I play the game for stuff like that, I just want to enjoy myself and play at the highest level and it would be the icing on the cake to leave with a medal. I'm just playing with a smile on my face in an England shirt again, it is a very special feeling.”
The morning after the incredible night before the England squad are still buzzing as they make their way through Adelaide Airport chattering and smiling and pausing for selfies, happy to talk and express their astonishment at just how emphatic their semi-final win was.
They briefly stop at 11am as the Last Post is played throughout the airport and a two minutes silence is impeccably observed by all. A reminder that while these games and this tournament means so much to so many, a sense of perspective in the bigger scheme of it all is no bad thing.
Minds soon turned to Melbourne though and a ninth game against Pakistan in the last eight weeks which tells you these two teams know each other well, even if Shaheen Shah Afridi and Jos Buttler missed the seven match series won by England in September.
“Both teams know each other like the back of our hands,” added Hales. “They're a very strong side, one of the best bowling attacks I've faced, for sure, and some of the best top-order players in the world. It's going to be a very good game and I think whoever handles the pressure best and executes under that pressure will win the tournament.”
