Eoin Morgan's presence at Lucknow airport raises eyebrows and questions about England's team environment

When the staff inside the security enclosure at the Lucknow airport went into overdrive to create a "green channel" for the England team who were getting ready to board a flight to Ahmedabad, Eoin Morgan was sitting in a corner of the lounge enjoying a mug of coffee.

The Indians had already departed, causing mayhem in their wake. The Englishmen's arrival caused very little commotion.

He did not recognise the former England captain who had won a World Cup, so he was politely asked to leave the area. The plain-clothes police finally gave in after learning about the former white-ball captain.

However, Morgan had been more than happy to give way to his former teammates.

After Morgan questioned the environment of the England team, who lost their fifth straight game on Sunday, there was a sense of unease. However, it was quickly allayed when head coach Matthew Mott showed him a great deal of warmth and intimacy when they met by coincidence.

Beyond the players' severe lack of form, Morgan had implied that the England camp was "unsettled" and that "something else going on."

Morgan appeared conscious of the fact that Mott had disregarded his critique of the team dynamic. When asked if he had anything further to say, all he could muster was a wry smile.

Following the defeat by India, Mott had declared, "I don't think that, at all."

"Despite our results, everyone in our tent would agree that we're an incredibly close-knit group. In fact, considering our past performance, former rugby international Dave Humphreys was shocked by how close-knit the group was when he spent a week observing us.

"There's always a chance to split when you're losing, but the group has, in my opinion, been really resilient.

"You should see how much fun our training sessions are. In an attempt to assist them, people are wrapping their arms around one another. When you're winning, that's easy to do; when you're losing, it's much harder. I'm glad we just keep attempting to stand up.

Before the former captain resigned 28 days later, Mott had a brief working relationship with Morgan following his appointment as head coach in May 2022. Since he started this team from scratch after the 2015 fiasco, Morgan is well acquainted with the group.

"Eoin has every right to his own opinion, and it's clear that he's been away for a few weeks due to the birth of his child," Mott continued. "He hasn't visited the rooms directly. Without a doubt, I'll talk to him about it. We get along really well together.

Liam Livingstone had also shot down Morgan's claims. "There is a great deal of respect for Morgs among everyone in that dressing room. Though we all adore Morgs, Livingstone insisted that everything on the team is good.

It was unclear if Morgan and Mott discussed the matter, but they both looked friendly as they spoke. They appeared to brush off the general suspicion that has been going around. Adil Rashid, Chris Woakes, and Moeen Ali also participated in the one-on-one conversation with their former captain.

Jos Buttler spoke briefly with Morgan as the players walked across the tarmac to the bus. Before leaving, they shook hands and gave each other a firm hug.

Even though some of the traveling English fans attempted to draw the team's attention by waving the Union Jack, their Indian counterparts also booed loudly.

The Indian supporters were chanting, "Everywhere you go, everywhere you go, England get battered."

However, nothing could faze the players and support staff, who appeared unaffected by what was going on around them.

Depending on where they finish in this table, England could potentially miss out on a Champions Trophy 2025 berth given their current state of affairs. The top seven placing teams from the other World Cup teams as well as the hosts Pakistan will advance. England is currently ranked last out of the ten participating teams.

Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Press Time staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.