'Rustiness' cost England against Windies, says Morgan

Eoin Morgan felt England paid the price for coming up against in-the-groove Twenty20 specialists in their defeat to West Indies at Durham.

Eoin Morgan trudges off after his dismissal

England captain Eoin Morgan pointed to West Indies' superior preparation as a key factor in the 21-run defeat to the tourist in Saturday's Twenty20 .

In the one-off clash at Chester-le-Street, the Windies' opening pair of Evin Lewis and Chris Gayle got off to a flying start before Liam Plunkett and Adil Rashid took three wickets apiece to ensure the visitor could only muster 176-9.

That looked below-par on a good wicket, but after Alex Hales provided fireworks with 43 off 17, England fell away and was dismissed for 155 in the final over.

READ: Brathwaite and Windies had doubts over Durham conditions

The likes of Lewis and Gayle have spent the past few weeks playing the shortest format in the Caribbean Premier League, and Morgan felt his men were slightly under-cooked in comparison.

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"There was a little bit of rustiness in everything," he said. "We fielded reasonably well against two guys who have just come off playing a T20 competition and are in good form.

"Adil and Liam got us back in the game, but with the bat our skill level wasn't there.

"It [playing T20 regularly] can be an advantage, but certainly you have to be good enough to take advantage of that. Being world-class at it takes a special person.

"There's the potential [in one-off games] to learn about younger players. It's a new experience for a guy like Tom Curran coming in bowling to Chris Gayle and Evin Lewis.

"Apart from that, it's a re-engagement for our guys with the white ball."

Morgan, who made a scratchy two from seven balls before falling victim to Sunil Narine (2-15) said of his own form: "I did alright for Middlesex, had an average T20 tournament.

"My form is in and out, it's not a huge concern but I'd like to score more runs."