Eoin Morgan speaks at a press conference prior to England's ODI against Ireland
Eoin Morgan insists England will treat Ireland with the utmost respect in tomorrow’s one-day international at Malahide.
Several senior players have been rested for both the Ireland fixture and the subsequent five-match NatWest Series with Australia.
Yet Morgan, captain in the absence of Alastair Cook, believes the new faces in England’s squad - such as Jamie Overton, Chris Jordan and Gary Ballance - are more than capable of making a big impression.
“I’d never take Ireland for granted and say that a weakened side would make it any more level,” said Morgan in his pre-match press conference.
“I think we’ve brought a strong side, a young and very talented side that, given opportunities, will hopefully show they are world-beaters.
“It’s very exciting for us to come across here and give these guys opportunities to hopefully flourish, particularly in a game like this.”
Morgan has retained a regular place in England’s limited-overs squads despite losing his Test place following the matches against Pakistan at the beginning of 2012.
The left-hander is determined to feature in five-day cricket again, having watched on with envy during the recent Investec Ashes.
“Ashes cricket is everything - the rivalry; the hype; the standard of cricket and how everybody adores and admires the guys playing in it should drive you to want to play Test cricket,” he added.
“Do I miss Test cricket? Yeah, absolutely. There’s no doubt that I want to continue to try and break back into the Test team. It’s just obviously weight of runs and a lack of form that has led me to where I am and being dropped.”
Asked if he believes strong one-day performances could earn him a recall, Morgan replied in the affirmative, adding: “It was the primary reason I got selected in the first place.
“We had come back off winning a Twenty20 World Cup and I had shown some very good form in one-day cricket. I had scored a couple of hundreds and put another couple of scores together against Australia and then I found myself making my Test debut.
“It’s certainly an avenue for the future in my perspective, definitely.”