Liam Livingstone proclaimed England’s victory over West Indies in the second ODI on Wednesday “a massive turning point” for the troubled team, a night when all the pieces clicked into place and the atmosphere shifted and brightened after a miserable World Cup was followed by defeat in the series opener.
“I wouldn’t say the energy’s ever been flat. I don’t think it was flat in India,” Livingstone said. “Sometimes you can try too hard, and I think we’ve been guilty of trying too hard. Sometimes you’re better off just letting things flow and relying on your natural ability – it’s something we’ve got truckloads of in that dressing room. It was going to turn at some point and I feel like Wednesday may be a massive turning point for us.
“I thought it was pretty much the perfect team performance: we were excellent in the powerplay with the ball, we were excellent in the powerplay with the bat, we did our job in the middle of both innings. Everybody’s worked as hard as they can to turn it around, and hopefully today is the turning point. We’ve played a lot of good cricket over the last two games, and I think this will do the lads a hell of a lot of good.”
Livingstone has struggled to impact games with the bat in the format, particularly since the start of the World Cup, but has made important contributions with the ball in this series, bowling 10 overs in the opening game, and taking three key wickets in the second.
“It’s something I’ve worked really hard on for a number of years. It’s not come as naturally as what batting has, so it’s nice that when my batting’s not really in the best place I can still contribute with the ball,” he said.
“I always try to contribute to England winning games of cricket, and I haven’t been able to do that for a couple of months with the bat. Hopefully that’s going to change at some point. I know it’s going to change, and I’m sure when things do change around I’ll look back on this time in my career as something that was a massive learning curve for me.”
Livingstone said a visit to his sick grandfather during the short break between the World Cup and this tour has given him valuable perspective. “Cricket’s a sport, it’s not the be-all and end-all. The sun comes up in the morning. Life moves on. Things happen,” he said. “I was incredibly happy to be able to see my grandad, who’s not in the greatest health at the moment. That gives incredible perspective for me. There’s more to life than cricket, and while we’re playing and we’ve got this opportunity to represent our country, it should be enjoyed.”
