Eoin Morgan has climbed Everest by winning World Cup: Andrew Strauss

England's captain Eoin Morgan celebrates with the World Cup trophy on the pitch after the 2019 Cricket World Cup final between England and New Zealand at Lord's Cricket Ground in London on July 14, 2019. - England won the World Cup for the first time as they beat New Zealand in a Super Over after a nerve-shredding final ended in a tie at Lord's on Sunday. (Photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar / AFP)


England team director Andrew Strauss is all praise for skipper Eoin Morgan, saying the latter has climbed Everest — the highest mountain peak in the world — by winning the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 on Sunday.

On 14 July, Morgan and his men fetched England their first-ever ODI World Cup trophy when they inched New Zealand on the boundary count in the final of the 2019 edition of the mega event.

“The question for him is what he wants to achieve here,” ESPNcricinfo quoted Strauss as saying, “because he has climbed Everest. That is the question for all the players, because we have made mistakes in the past. We’ve won Ashes series and got to No.1 in the world and thought that was the end in itself.

“We have to find a way of making this a launchpad for something bigger and better and that is a huge challenge,” added Strauss.

The former England skipper also said that it’s up to Morgan to decide whether he wants to lead the side or not.

“I certainly hope that what he is doing right now, unless he is absolutely clear he wants to carry on, is just taking a bit of time to reflect where he is at,” said Strauss, adding, “To stay on as captain he needs to be driven and motivated to push people on as he has done over the last four years and if he has the bit between his teeth then we’ve seen just what a fantastic leader he is.”

England will now shift their focus to Test cricket as they will face traditional rivals Australia in the five-match Ashes Series beginning 1 August in Birmingham, England.

(With inputs from IANS)