Eoin Morgan has backed Nottinghamshire’s Alex Hales to be a key player for England during the forthcoming Royal London One-Day International Series against Pakistan.
The first match of the series takes place at the Ageas Bowl tomorrow with the third installment of the five-match campaign taking place at Trent Bridge on Tuesday 30 August.
Morgan, who captains England in limited-overs cricket, says his opening batsman should look no further than the winter series in South Africa, in which Hales passed 50 in all five matches, for inspiration.
“Alex has scored a huge amount of runs, particularly in one-day international cricket and more specifically against South Africa last winter," said Morgan.
“That was straight after his first Test series when he probably wasn't happy with the amount of runs he scored.
“He rectified that in the one-day series and showed a huge amount of ability and experience against a very, very good side to score a lot of runs.
“To do that when you're coming off not being happy with your game shows a huge amount of character.
“We'll be backing him to do what he thinks is right and not focus on mistakes the whole time.
“That's really important because, as a batsman, it's easy to get down on yourself.
“You always finish on a mistake, no matter how well you do. You can spend the whole time trying to identify the mistake. That can be the wrong thing to do.
“Sometimes cricket can take you to a place you don't want to go and it's important to recognise that in your players. You need to spot it when it crops up.”
Morgan has been encouraging Hales to spend time on the golf course rather than in the nets during the build-up to the series.
“You have to live the part of being relaxed,” said the left-hander, who could also call on Jake Ball after the Nottinghamshire fast bowler was drafted into the squad.
“There's no point going back to your room and staying uptight. I know Alex likes to play golf, so I'll be advising him to spend an hour on the range rather than in the nets.
“Focus on swinging a golf club instead of swinging your bat and it can take pressure away. It's important.
“I focus on keeping the players as fresh as possible. It's not just a question of saying it, it's a question of living it as well. If you're on in training, you're on.
“But when you're done, you're away from the ground to relax. When you come to the ground it's about being switched on. It's a big part of my captaincy.”
Morgan insists that the whole England batting line-up, which is likely to be led by Hales and Jason Roy at the top of the order, followed by Joe Root then the captain himself, will go out with license to thrill.
"There's a stark difference now to the team we had in the World Cup and the way we played during it,' said the 29-year-old skipper.
“The manner in which we've played has changed and the batting unit seems to go on forever now.
“Everyone's playing their own way and we'll continue to try to push the limits the whole way.
“As a group we hold the record for most consecutive scores past 300 and we hold the record for the highest ever total.
“When you're winning games while doing that it creates a lot of belief and helps change the mentality of how we're trying to play, which is a big part of what we're trying to change.
"The fact it has come so quickly is brilliant.”
Trent Bridge will host an Investec Test Match between England and South Africa, and a Royal London One-Day International visit from the West Indies, in 2017.
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