‘Hold myself accountable, harsh if I turn around and blame the captain and coach’: England director of cricket Rob Key

England's one-day international setup will not undergo a major overhaul despite a dismal World Cup campaign.

England's Joe Root and Ben Stokes look dejected after losing to India at the Cricket World Cup. (PHOTO: REUTERS)

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The Englan cricket arrived on the Indian shores as the defending champions and before the tournament began they were backed to even defend their status as the World Cup holders in the 50-over format. After all, they hold both the global white-ball trophies.

However, their form took an unlikely downturn, and the entire World Cup journey turned into a nightmare as they ended up winning three games and finishing in seventh place.

England moved out of the last spot by winning its last two games. So it’s back to the drawing board for the English, who’ll need to develop a fresh young team, and Director of cricket Rob Key took the share of the blame for the shoddy performance by the Three Lions.

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“I look at what I’ve not done rather than blaming everyone else. I hold myself accountable for a lot,” he was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au.

He also backed England’s white-ball head coach, Matthew Mott, and stated that he will be given time to set the house in order.

“Since I’ve started this job, it’s very hard for me to be critical of Jos Buttler and Matthew Mott when I’m the one who, every single time a decision has been made around whether or not we focus on 50-over cricket, Test cricket or T20, I’ve always chosen Test cricket.

“When there was a choice in Pakistan over who got the best players, I’ve always said, ‘Sorry, Test cricket gets that focus at the moment’. The same thing in South Africa. I’ve always chosen Test cricket. It’s not easy for coaches and captains when you haven’t got the ability to plan and have your best team,” said Key.

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“That’s not their fault. So I feel like it’s harsh if I turn around and blame the captain and coach. Really, I hold myself at the top of that list for what’s gone wrong on this trip. As far as I’m concerned he gets my full backing. He’s the person to get the first opportunity to put that right,” explained Key.

So it does seem like England’s one-day international setup will not undergo a major overhaul despite a dismal World Cup campaign.

“I feel this actually should be the making of those two (Mott and Buttler) as a partnership. If it isn’t, it isn’t and you move on – but we have to make sure some good comes out of what has been a very poor World Cup,” he concluded.