Eoin Morgan becomes most successful T20I skipper; leapfrogs MS Dhoni, Asghar Afghan

England skipper Eoin Morgan has surpassed former India captain MS Dhoni and former Afghanistan leader Asghar Afghan to become the most successful T20I captain. Morgan led England to a win over Sri Lanka by 26 runs in the 20-20 World Cup. This was his 43rd win which helped him leapfrog Dhoni and Afghan, who have 42 victories to their name in 72 and 52 matches respectively. Morgan took 68 games to achieve this feat.

The 26-run victory over Sri Lanka also guarantees Morgan-led England a semifinal berth in the showpiece event. Due to a superior net run rate, the team in all probability will top Group A. This will be the second time in a row that Morgan has taken his team to the semis. During the last edition in 2016, England almost had their hands on the world title, only to be denied by West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite, who smoked four sixes to deny Morgan a victory.

Post the 2015 50-over World Cup exit, England have revamped their white-ball cricket and Morgan, who took on the leadership from Alastair Cook in December 2014, has played a big role in the turnaround. Not only he has been instrumental in changing the landscape of England in the limited-overs format, but has also made this team fearless and adaptable.

During the team’s latest victory over Sri Lanka, England were struggling a bit, with the scoreboard reading 46 for 3. Wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler played a sensible knock and didn’t attack from word go. He was ready to play the situation and only played shots during the latter stages of the innings. This adaptability has been key to England’s success. Buttler scored a magnificent hundred to take England to a defendable score.

The Morgan-led team will now play their last match of the Super 12 stage against South Africa on Saturday (November 6).