Liam Plunkett heartbroken on his omission from England team

Liam Plunkett heartbroken on his omission from England team, says 'disappointed is an understatement'

Veteran England paceman Liam Plunkett is unamused by the treatment of selectors and how they dealt with his removal from the England team. Being a mainstay in ICC 2015 and 2019 ODI World Cups, he fell down the pecking order gradually - the story of Plunkett's career - and now the 36-year-old is being ignored as England prioritize giving opportunities to the young bowlers. However, what irked Plunkett the most was, what he felt, the lack of apt communication ahead of the New Zealand tour in 2019.

Plunkett was shocked to see how he got to know about his omission from the team via Twitter and he felt it wasn't the right way to inform him that he is no longer part of England's future plans.

“I can see where they were going it’s just the way it was done. I found out on Twitter that I wasn’t going to South Africa [New Zealand], surely they can give me a call. It was just the way it was done; I thought it was shit to be honest with you," Plunkett was quoted as saying by Wisden.

“If someone actually called me to say, ‘Listen, being realistic, we’re going to go with the youngsters, thanks for everything you’ve done.”

Plunkett described his headspace on Twitter by saying "Disappointed is an understatement".

“Just the way it was dealt with, nobody really made a call. I got a call when the England squad played in the bubble, I think it was a 40-man squad [55]. I got a phone call a year later off Ed Smith [after he was first dropped] saying, ‘Mate, you’re not in the squad.’ And I was like, ‘It’s pretty late now, you could have called me a year ago," added Plunkett

"It had sort of sailed by, there was no need to call [at that point]. It was just the way it was dealt with. I could see where they were going," he added.

Plunkett stepped up to the plate in the all-important ICC 2019 World Cup final where he took the prized scalp of Kane Williamson and repaid the faith of selectors who entrusted him to get the job done in pressure situations. He maintained a superb economy rate and picked wickets on regular basis in the last World Cup and many felt he would continue to represent England for a few years but he was overlooked. 

Plunkett was part of the touring party that visited Pakistan shores in 2005-06 and he made a mark right away early in his career. In 89 ODIs, he picked 135 wickets and often chipped in with useful contributions from the bat down the order.