Liam Livingstone is raring to go for the T20 World Cup after the England all-rounder revealed he took an injection to sort out a long-standing knee injury

Liam Livingstone insists that he is raring to go for the T20 World Cup after revealing that he had an injection recently to finally sort out a knee injury that has plagued him since December 2022.

The England all-rounder first sustained the knock during his Test debut against Pakistan in Rawalpindi and the 30-year-old returned home from the IPL early this year in a bid to get his ‘knee sorted’ before the World Cup.

‘I’ve got something underneath my kneecap that keeps catching. Thankfully, the injection sorted that out or hopefully it has,’ revealed Livingstone. ‘It’s not been the most enjoyable 18 months trying to play with a niggle. It drains your spirit and drains your enjoyment of cricket. I was in a pretty crap place at the end of the IPL. It was getting too much. 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 I feel like I’ve got a smile on my face and that’s all that really matters to me,’ he added.

England left London for Barbados on Friday ahead of their title defence after their rain affected series win over Pakistan, where two of the four matches were abandoned. But Livingstone admits that despite the series ‘never really getting going’, England are in a ‘really good place’ and are ‘ready to go’, highlighting the impact of Jofra Archer and Mark Wood. Thursday’s game was only the third time that England’s two fastest bowlers have played together since March 2021.

‘I feel like we’ve spent the whole time in a hotel room or on the bus. But no, a two-nil victory going into the World Cup is great. What was better was what we actually got out of that – having Jof and Woody gives us that extra edge that we haven’t had before, which is pretty cool – maybe not for net sessions, but certainly for games – and it’s great to have both of them,’ said Livingstone. ‘Any team that has them, before you even start the game, you feel like you’re one step ahead. We feel like we’ve got pretty much all basics covered, which is what you want going into a World Cup,’ he added.

The England all-rounder returned early from the IPL to sort his issue before the World Cup

Livingstone rushed back from ankle trouble to feature in England’s T20 World Cup win in 2022

And Livingstone, who rushed back from an ankle injury in 2022 to feature in England’s T20 World Cup win in Australia, is adamant that England expect to go far in the competition again. Jos Buttler’s side begin their campaign on Tuesday against Scotland at the Kensington Oval as the first of four group games against Australia, Oman and Namibia with the top two progressing to the Super 8s.

‘It’s hard to say if it’s a stronger or weaker side (than 2022),’ Livingstone said. ‘We won a World Cup in Australia, so we had a pretty strong side there. But certainly, we feel like we’ve got a very good team. We’re in a much better place than what we were six months ago, which is pretty exciting for all of us,’ he added.

Livingstone is set to bat at seven and despite only facing three balls in the four-match series against Pakistan, starred with a double wicket maiden at The Oval on Thursday and he credited the faith of the England management with his all-round game.

‘I love coming back to play for England because Jos and Motty really trust my bowling, which not many people do in different competitions,’ said Livingstone. It’s a difficult role batting at seven. I faced three balls in this series and may not face a ball until we get out there and we’re 60 for five. So I’ve got to try and contribute in a different way and being able to do that with the ball or whatever it is in the field. I guess that’s the cool thing about being able to contribute in all three facets of the game: whenever you’re called upon, you’ve got an opportunity.’