Eoin Morgan

Credited for overhauling the outlook of the English white-ball side after their 2015 WC knockout, Morgan can be as destructive as anyone while batting but as calm as the best of them all while captaining on the field. The skills to be unfazed and proactive about the situations surrounding him make Morgan an exemplary cricketer. He led the inventors of Cricket to their maiden ODI World Cup triumph in 2019. 

Eoin Joseph Gerard Morgan is an Irish-born cricketer who has represented both Ireland and England at the highest level. As a 17-year-old teenager, Morgan was selected to Ireland during the U19 World Cup of 2004 and ended the tournament as the highest Irish run-scorer. Two years later, he captained Ireland in the 2006 U19 World Cup and finished as the second-highest run-getter. 

In August 2006, Morgan got his break to represent Ireland against Scotland and unfortunately got run-out on 99. A year later, the southpaw scored his maiden century against Canada in his fifth game. He was also a part of Ireland’s World Cup squad in 2007 where got to the Super8, but the southpaw had a very poor tournament. 

After making his international debut, Morgan got a county contract from Middlesex. Post the World Cup, he got a permanent feature, especially in Middlesex’s limited-overs side to invest in his future. In 2008, the southpaw scored his maiden first-class century, playing for England Lions against touring South Africans. When Ireland got qualified for the 2011 World Cup in 2009, Morgan chose to stay in England seeking a long-sighting benefit. 

Later that year, he was selected for in the 15-men squad for the World T20 and made his T20 debut during a game against the Netherlands. However, Morgan shot to fame during the Champions Trophy of 2009 where he bashed two back-to-back half-centuries against Sri Lanka and South Africa. He played his maiden Test debut against Bangladesh in 2010 at Lord’s. 

Morgan was named a replacement for Kevin Pietersen for the 2011 World Cup held in the sub-continent. Although the southpaw could only play three ODIs in the tournament and scored two half-centuries in the period. Post the event, he became a regular in the English side. 

He was named the vice-captain for the 2014 World T20 held in Bangladesh and he was an automatic captaincy choice when ECB axed Alastair Cook. He led the England side during their embarrassing World Cup campaign in 2015 Down Under. Then BCB persisted in Morgan and he revamped the English setup and changed their brand of cricket. The next year, he led England to the final of the 2016 World T20, but he marched on his formula and led England’s side to their maiden glory during the 2019 World Cup held at home. 

Over the years, Morgan has spent his IPL career with various teams such as RCB with whom he played in 2010, Sunrisers Hyderabad where he played in the 2015 and 2016 editions while he also featured in the Kings XI Punjab line up in the IPL 2018.

Having established himself as a free-flowing stroke maker and the man of pressure situations, Morgan earned a call back from KKR which chose to bid for him for a mere Rs 5.25 crore. During the 2020 season, when the KKR was in the middle of a fix, Morgan was named the captain of the franchise midway through the tournament. However, the season ended as a disappointment for Kolkata, but they decided to show faith in Morgan and named him captain for the 2021 edition as well. 

More importantly, the game will remember 'Captain Morgan' for the maverick stroke-making all-over the field, and changing the dynamics of English white-ball cricket through his captaincy, using an attacking mindset.

(As of March 2021)