T20 World Cup: ‘Play like Sehwag said Baz’ – England’s win over New Zealand looked like good times

In the current World Cup, they have escaped Nepal against Nepal, beaten Scotland and Italy when the walls almost came down, and beat Sri Lanka with one of their greatest individual performances.

It’s a welcome change for a team that squandered any chances created in Australia.

“If you can get yourself out of some tough situations and end up winning matches, that’s great for your confidence,” Jax said.

“There is no better team than the team that fights and finds a way to win.”

This does not mean that England was by any means perfect, nor does it mean that everything that happened this winter has been forgotten.

There is no certainty that McCullum will take over in the summer, even after reaching the semi-finals.

The Test victory in Hyderabad last year, followed by four heavy defeats, also shows that one should never go too far.

Harry Brook’s men now leave Sri Lanka – a country that has provided refuge over the past weeks and brought home six T20 victories from six – for India and the semi-final.

There they could meet the co-hosts, West Indies or South Africa – the three most feared teams in this tournament. There are only a very few times you can return to the well.

“Everyone knows about India and the story that goes with it,” Jack said.

“It could also be West Indies and they beat us in Mumbai.

“We know how difficult it is. We will watch that game on Sunday. We will be ready. We will go into the game with optimism.”

This is the optimism that has been depleted in recent months. For many, it will truly take months to return.

However, Jack spoke with a gleam in his eye – the look of a team starting to believe in itself again – and dismissed concerns about the lack of outright victories.

“We won six out of seven matches and qualified for the semi-finals,” he said.

“At the end of the day, no one really cares. Obviously we want to play well in this game but we’re not disappointed that we didn’t play a perfect game.”

“This is T20 cricket.

“What we did well was the crucial moments – we stayed calm and composed and were able to get those rewards.”

For now it is working. It’s a welcome return to the good times.