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England batter Dawid Malan has opened up about how he was emotional after being sidelined from playing XI in the T20 World Cup final against Pakistan. Malan expressed that he cried after being told that the team management decided not to risk him at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) for the summit clash.
Malan suffered a groin injury during England's Super 12 clash against Sri Lanka. The batter hence missed the semi-final clash against India, during which the Three Lions registered a dominant 10-wicket win over the Men in Blue to qualify for the Grand Finale. Then before the final, Malan passed a fitness test and was given every chance to show his fitness ahead of the grand final against Pakistan. But head coach Matthew Mott and skipper Jos Buttler felt that it was not worth taking a chance on Malan.
While speaking after the first ODI against Australia, the left-handed batter said it was "one of the toughest days I’ve ever had as a cricketer. We all have tough times in our careers. Not being able to play the final was probably one of the toughest days I've ever had as a cricketer. That's what sport's like – it's cruel sometimes, " Malan said while speaking after the first ODI against Australia on Thursday.
He then expressed that he would be letting his team down if despite passing the fitness aggravated his injury during the game. He said, "If you're just not fit and not able to do what's required, it's probably easier to take than to pass a fitness test and still be in a situation where you're still at risk, and you could still let the team down by pulling up the next day in the second over of the game chasing a ball.
Malan then revealed a conversation he had with his teammate Mark Wood, who also had to miss the final after suffering an injury. The pair talked about being unhappy with missing the final but knew the decision was made for the benefit of the team. He said, "Mark and myself had a two-minute chat. We both were gutted and then said 'it's not about us anymore, it's about what the team needed. It's in the past. We've won the World Cup, that's all that matters."