England coach Trevor Bayliss has warned Australia that his side won’t crack under pressure if they have to bat second in Thursday’s World Cup semi-final.
Bayliss’s side lost to Australia at Lord’s in the group stage after failing to chase down the holders’ total of 285-7.
England were bowled out for 221 against Australia and also lost to Pakistan and Sri Lanka after batting second.
Those defeats raised concerns about the World Cup hosts’ ability to cope with the stress of run chasing.
But Bayliss has no concerns that England will panic if they find themselves in the position of chasing down a score at Edgbaston.
“Over the past four years we have won 14 of the last 17 times we have batted second,” he told BBC Radio 5Live’s Sportsweek programme.
“So batting second doesn’t scare our guys and the wickets are a little better now than they were earlier in the tournament. We are full of confidence and happy to be in the semi-finals.”
Asked about losing to Australia earlier in the tournament, Bayliss added: “I think it was more to do with the way we approached the game.
“We came in off a bad loss to Sri Lanka in the game before where we got completely away from our style of play I guess and I think there was still a bit of a hangover in that next match.
“After that the boys made a commitment to going out – win, lose or draw – to play to their strengths and we did that in the next two games and put in a good performance so it is about sticking to our processes and how we play well.”
Whether they bat first or second, semi-final success for England is likely to depend on whether openers Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow can enjoy another impressive partnership.
The pair have been key in recent matches, with Roy restored to the team following a hamstring injury.
The 28-year-old has developed into a pivotal part of the England limited-overs set-up, but Bayliss admits he is under consideration for a place in the Ashes squad against Australia later this year.
“I think so. Jason has had success at international cricket and that goes a long way to being able to handle the pressure so it is a definite option,” Bayliss said.
