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Cape Town - England spinner Adil Rashid has given captain Eoin Morgan huge credit for the team's rise to the number one ranking in ODI cricket.
After a disastrous 2015 World Cup where they crashed out at the group stage, England have transformed their white-ball cricket in the last three years to become one of the favourites for next year's global showpiece.
The leg-spinner, Rashid, who has played a key role in the middle-overs for England, also said Morgan has been a key factor in his own development as a slow-bowler in the shorter formats.
The Yorkshire spinner said: "A huge amount of credit goes to him for how far we've come from the series against New Zealand in 2015 to where we are now, which is No 1.
"As a captain, a leader and a person, he really gives confidence to players.
"He is a great leader for this bunch of lads and he has made this environment a nice one to be in, you want to play for him and you want to enjoy it on and off the pitch."
Morgan is a man who shows little emotion on the field, whether it is good or bad, and Rashid feels his skipper's body language plays a key role in giving him the confidence to deliver when needed.
Rashid continued: "He knows you are going to have good days and bad days. One big positive I've found is there are no big emotions from him if you're not bowling so well or things are not going great for the team.
"He doesn't really show it in his face which is a big positive for the players.
"For me he has been a massive help. He has given me the confidence to go out there and try to get wickets and if you get smashed, no problem because we've got five other bowlers to keep it tight. It is my job to create chances and he has been a big positive for me."
England end their limited-overs leg of the tour to Sri Lanka with a one-off T20I in Colombo on Saturday.
