Ben Stokes reversing his ODI retirement has had the knock-on effect of Harry Brook being nudged out of England’s preliminary squad for the defence of their World Cup crown.
England have named a 15-man squad for four tune-ups against New Zealand next month and, barring injury, that is the group which will bid to retain their 50-over world title in India in October and November.
Jofra Archer’s elbow troubles will be preclude his involvement until at least the latter stages of the tournament so England have bolstered their pace attack by calling up uncapped quick Gus Atkinson.
Archer and Brook may be selected as two of three travelling reserves, with England having until September 5 to submit a provisional squad and then September 28 by which to make any alterations.
The return of Stokes was widely-anticipated but less expected was Brook’s omission, as the Yorkshireman has excelled in the past 12 months even if schedule conflicts have limited him to three ODI matches.
“It’s as hard a decision as you’re ever going to get,” said England men’s national selector Luke Wright. “No doubting he’s someone we couldn’t think any more highly of.
“Everything’s going brilliantly with Brooky. There’s no denying what a superstar he is and what a huge future he’s got with us going forward in all forms.
“I’m sure he’s disappointed. But unfortunately in a 15-man squad, someone’s going to have to miss out. With Stokesy coming back, it made it incredibly tough.”
Stokes branded his three-format schedule as “unsustainable” when bowing out of ODIs last summer while he had initially planned to use a six-month gap between Tests to address a chronic left knee injury.
The issue meant he did not bowl in the last three Ashes Tests but he is set for a specialist batting role as England have selected an influx of all-rounders in Liam Livingstone, Moeen Ali and Sam Curran.
England’s Test captain was the inspiration behind their historic triumph in the 2019 World Cup final – he is one of nine survivors to make this autumn’s edition – and in last year’s T20 equivalent.
“It wasn’t really a case of changing his mind,” said Wright. “Once his body was in a good place and he’d had a rest, he was really keen to play. He still has time to do his rest and rehab, which he’s doing, and he says his knee does feel like it’s improving.
“The one thing we won’t be doing is pushing him to bowl unless he’s absolutely fit and raring to go.
“Ultimately the decision came down to ‘it’s a World Cup we want to win and we feel like we are better, and have more chance, with Stokesy than we haven’t’. If ever there’s someone for the big moments it’s Ben Stokes.”
Atkinson has featured in just two List A matches in his career but has impressed when called upon in recent months for Surrey and Oval Invincibles, where he was clocked at 95mph in The Hundred.
The 25-year-old gives England an additional express pace option other than Mark Wood, joining a fast bowling attack comprising Chris Woakes plus three left-armers in Curran, David Willey and Reece Topley.
“First and foremost, Gus deserves to be in there,” said Wright. “He’s been someone that I’ve been quite a big fan of for quite a while, he roughed me up on a few occasions when I was still playing.
“He’s a real asset for us and we’re delighted to give him an opportunity.”
Archer was England’s super over hero four years ago but is at the start of the comeback trail from another stress fracture in his bowling elbow and England do not want to rush his recovery.
“There has got to be a duty of care with Jof, we know how desperate we all are to have him, there’s no doubt about that, but we’ve also got to get it right for him,” added Wright.
“The best case scenario for Jof at the moment would probably be to be available for the back end of the tournament. But obviously, a lot of things have still got to go right with this rehab before then.”
Before four ODIs against New Zealand from September 8-15 – they play the same opponents in the World Cup opener in Ahmedabad on October 5 – England begin their white-ball summer programme with four T20s against the Kiwis from August 30-September 5.
Hampshire seamer John Turner has earned his first senior call-up, while Josh Tongue, who has caught the eye in the Test side this summer, is set for his maiden experience of England’s limited-overs set-up.
England ODI squadEngland T20 squad: J Buttler (captain), R Ahmed, M Ali, G Atkinson, J Bairstow, H Brook, S Curran, B Duckett, W Jacks, L Livingstone, D Malan, A Rashid, J Tongue, J Turner, L Wood.
Turning the tide: Windies captain Powell cautiously optimistic about comeback in T20 series against England
Though facing an uphill task in their five-match T20 series against England, West Indies captain Rovman Powell is cautiously optimistic that they can produce a comeback to not only overturn a challenging 2-0 deficit but to go all the way in the series.
Powell’s sentiments served as a rallying cry of sorts as they stare down a must-win situation in the third encounter at the Darren Sammy Cricket Ground in St Lucia on Thursday to keep the series alive.
Still, Powell expressed confidence that the Caribbean setting, coupled with a few strategic changes, will bolster their fightback.
“St. Lucia is always a good place for us. It provides an opportunity for us to play good cricket, and the wicket is generally a good one, probably the best one in the Caribbean,” Powell said in a pre-game interview.
“The people of St Lucia always come out to support us, which is also good, and so we're looking forward to the next three games. Hopefully they can come out and support us, and we can deliver some good cricket,” he added.
After two tough matches in Barbados, which England won by eight wickets and seven wickets, respectively, Powell emphasized the significance of a renewed focus while also pointing to the need for every player to take personal accountability heading into the crucial contest.
“I think it’s a case of each guy reflecting on how things have gone so far from an individual perspective to see if we as individuals are bringing enough to the table, and then we try our best to try to put it together as a team. We have areas that definitely need work, but the guys are in good spirits. We had a good training session today, so we’re hoping to hit the ground running,” Powell explained.
St Lucia is not only familiar territory but also presents a new beginning, especially with the return of key pacer Alzarri Joseph from a two-match suspension.
Powell believes Joseph’s presence will fortify a bowling attack that has struggled in the opening games, as England easily chased down 182 and 158 in both games.
“If you should look at our bowling department, we really needed him in those games. So, it's important for him to come and hit the straps and hit the ground running. As a bowling group, we have areas where we need to control the power play because the middle overs generally take care of themselves, and he will come to bowl some of those overs in the backend,” he shared.
Despite the uphill battle, Powell cited the Caribbean side’s recent successes over the past 18 months as a reminder of their potential.
“It's a little uncomfortable being 2-0 to be honest; it's a position that we haven't found ourselves in in a long time, but it's an opportunity for us to show what we are made of as a T20 team,” Powell declared.
“England is a team that we have played quite often these days, and we have had good results against them. It's just unfortunate that Barbados wasn't good for us in terms of T20 cricket, but St Lucia provides a new opportunity for us to come out and play some good cricket,” the Jamaican reasoned.
Finally, Powell reiterated the importance of a victory on Thursday, not only to stay in the series but also to set the stage for an exhilarating weekend of cricket. The final two encounters are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday.
“It's a case of us getting back into the series; we just need a win, and once we get the win tomorrow, we can go from there. The guys are upbeat; even though we are 2-0 down, they are in a good frame of mind and ready to play good cricket,” the captain ended.
'England comes before anything' – Kane unhappy with Three Lions withdrawals
Harry Kane has questioned the number of players withdrawing from the latest England squad, insisting the national team "comes before anything".
England face Greece and the Republic of Ireland in their final two matches in Nations League Group B2 this week, also their last two games under interim head coach Lee Carsley before Thomas Tuchel takes over in January.
Eight players have withdrawn from Carsley's squad – Trent Alexander-Arnold, Cole Palmer, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Bukayo Saka, Declan Rice, Aaron Ramsdale and Levi Colwill.
In an interview with ITV Sport on Wednesday, Three Lions skipper Kane appeared to question the commitment of those dropping out.
"I think England comes before anything. England comes before club," Kane said.
"England is the most important thing you play as a professional footballer and Gareth [Southgate] was hot on that and he wasn't afraid to make decisions if, you know, that started to drift from certain players.
"It's a shame this week obviously. I think it's a tough period of the season, maybe that's been taken advantage of a little bit.
"I don't really like it if I'm totally honest. I think England comes before anything, any club situation."
England likely need to beat Greece – who claimed a 2-1 victory at Wembley Stadium last month – to have any chance of winning automatic promotion back to League A.
Should the Three Lions finish second, they will face a third-placed finisher from League A – potentially Poland, Belgium, Hungary or Serbia – in a promotion play-off tie in March.
Tilak's unbeaten ton helps India take lead against South Africa
Tilak Varma smashed an unbeaten 107 as India went 2-1 up in their T20I series against South Africa, claiming a nail-biting victory in Wednesday's third match in Centurion.
Following their surprise defeat in Sunday's second match, the tourists bounced back to earn their 10th win in their last 12 outings in the format, putting them on the brink of a series triumph.
Tilak was the star of the show as he produced comfortably the best score of his T20I career, surpassing a knock of 55 versus Bangladesh last year in some style, while only facing 56 balls.
He hit eight fours and seven maximums to set South Africa a target of 220 for victory, with Abhishek Sharma scoring 50 from 25 deliveries in support before Keshav Maharaj broke their partnership in the ninth over.
Despite six of India's batsmen scoring 18 runs or fewer and four – Sanju Samson (0), Suryakumar Yadav (1), Rinku Singh (8) and Axar Patel (1) – being limited to single figures, the damage had largely been done already.
South Africa were then dropped to 84-4 within their first 10 overs as Varun Chakravarthy claimed the crucial wickets of Reeza Hendricks (12) and Aiden Markram (29).
Heinrich Klaasen's incredible 54 off 17 balls dragged South Africa back into contention, and they required 18 runs from four deliveries in a grandstand finish, but Arshdeep Singh trapped the hosts' dangerman lbw to secure India's victory.
Having fallen short of their target by just 11 runs, the Proteas must now win Friday's fourth match to salvage a 2-2 draw from the series.
Data Debrief: Big-hitting India on the brink
Tilak recorded a strike rate of 191.07 while Abhishek was at 200.00 as their early partnership powered India towards victory.
India have now hit over 200 sixes in T20I matches this calendar year, only previously surpassing that figure in the format in one previous year – recording 289 in 2022.
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