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England all-rounder Liam Livingstone revealed that his knee injury left him in a 'crap place' at the end of his IPL 2024 stint for the Punjab Kings. The Lancashire cricketer also disclosed that the niggle over the last 18 months left him not enjoying the game as he is always used to.
Livingstone returned home from IPL 2024, missing the final two matches to get his knee sorted ahead of the T20 World Cup. The 30-year-old didn't have the most productive campaign in the lucrative league, managing 111 runs in seven matches and picking up three scalps.
He spoke about the injury after England's seven-wicket win over Pakistan in the fourth T20I on Thursday, May 30. The hard-hitting batter said that the anti-inflammatory injection has given him relief and he is able to smile again. As quoted by ESPN Cricinfo, he said:
"It's not been the most enjoyable 18 months of trying to play with a niggle. It kind of drains your spirit, drains your enjoyment of cricket. I was in a pretty crap place at the end of the IPL… thankfully, the injection seems to have worked and just being able to play cricket pain-free for the first time in two years is the exciting part for me.
"I feel like I've got a smile on my face again, and I'm enjoying playing cricket."
The spin-bowling all-rounder has played only 12 matches in T20 World Cups, but his bowling performance against Pakistan should hold him in good stead. He bagged figures of 1/9 in Birmingham and 2/17 in London.
"Got to try and contribute in a different way" - Liam Livingstone
Livingstone faced only three balls in the four-match series against Pakistan. He admitted that a chance to play a long innings might come only in case of England's top-order collapse, saying:
"I love coming back to play for England because Jos [Buttler] and Motty [Matthew Mott] really trust my bowling, which not many people do in different competitions. It's a difficult role batting at No. 7: I faced three balls in this series and may not face a ball until we get out there and we're 60 for 5, so I've got to try and contribute in a different way."
England will open their T20 World Cup campaign against Scotland on Tuesday (June 4) in Barbados.
