We’re a ‘different animal’ now, says Plunkett

Liam Plunkett has warned Australia that England are a  “different sort of animal” from their predecessors as they prepare for their blockbuster World Cup semifinal.

“They’ve been there and done it before but not against this bunch of players,” he said.

“We’re a different sort of animal compared to our last teams. We’ve played well for the past four years, we’re ranked number one and we feel in a good place. We feel on our day we can beat anyone in the world.”

Plunkett is the elder statesman of the current England squad, making his international bow in 2005 and earning his previous taste of World Cup cricket 12 years ago in the West Indies.

“We had amazing players (previously) but I never thought we’d win a World Cup,” he said.

“We’ve made it exciting again. I’ve played in teams where we didn’t expect to win. With this squad the public expect us to win games and win series.

“It would be nice to finish this four-year cycle. This journey we’ve been on, with this group of boys, it comes down to this.”