Jason Roy faces an anxious wait over his World Cup spot after England captain Jos Buttler admitted the selectors would need to “regroup” and “let the dust settle” before finalising their squad.
Roy, a key part of the side that won the global crown on home turf four years ago, was named in the provisional squad last month and his long established opening partnership with Jonny Bairstow appeared to be inked in for next month’s tournament in India.
But the landscape has shifted quickly, with Roy suffering back spasms that ruled him out of all four ODIs against New Zealand – a series effectively planned as a fine-tuning exercise before the competition.
In his absence Dawid Malan has made a compelling case to take his spot in the first-choice XI, reeling off 277 runs at an average of 92.33 with a strike-rate of 105.72 and signing off with a superb Lord’s century.
With the versatile Harry Brook hovering in the background after surprisingly being cut from the initial list, Roy’s fitness issues could hardly have come at a worse time.
England are expected to formalise their picks next week, ahead of the September 28 deadline, but Buttler has reiterated head coach Matthew Mott’s suggestion that will be no formality.
Brook already has a place in a much-changed squad to face Ireland and Roy may be asked to join it to prove his form and fitness. For both men, the stakes are high in the coming days.
Asked if the final 15 was now set in stone after a 3-1 win over the Black Caps, Buttler offered a single, telling word in reply.
“Nope,” he said. Expanding on the subject, and Roy’s status, he added: “Obviously it changes and now you can let the dust settle on the series.
“We just have to find out (how he is). The biggest frustration for him is he wants to be fit and playing, affecting games of cricket for England. He’s been working really hard to be fit and available but we now have a few days where we can regroup – the coach, the captain, the selectors – and just work out exactly what we need to do moving forward.
“You don’t want to risk anything but at the same time you do want guys to play cricket. That’s our job, to play cricket and we all want to play.”
Roy’s status is complicated by his long tenure in the side. He was a key pillar of England’s white-ball revolution from 2015 and has played more ODIs in the last four years than anyone else, with 32.
Yet his output has diminished over the same period – with an average of 42.79 up to the 2019 final dropping to 31.78 in the aftermath.
England are not averse to ruthlessness, axing Roy on the eve of last year’s T20 tournament and going on to claim the trophy, but are wrestling with their commitment to their core players.
“We’ve tried to be a really loyal team and selection panel throughout. It’s something Eoin Morgan and Trevor Bayliss (former captain and coach) started, right at the start,” explained Buttler.
“If you ask people to play in an aggressive way then leave them out as soon as it goes wrong, it sends the wrong message. We’re asking people to take risks, so there will be failures along the way.
“We’ve reaped the rewards of been consistent with selection, so certainly you take whole picture in. You can’t just pick a World Cup squad from these four games because there’s a lot of thought and process that goes into looking into people as a whole.
“That’s been one of the hallmarks of selection but I think we can find out all the information over the next few days if we need to and make what will always be a really tough decision.
“We’re blessed with so many good cricketers in the white-ball game at the moment but in a World Cup, you can only take 15.”
Jofra Archer, another member of the 2019 group, is still under consideration as a travelling reserve as he comes back from another injury-ruined season but Buttler urged caution where the 28-year-old was concerned.
“He’s been out of the game for a while. He’s had his elbow and his back [injuries] and he’s still a young man who’s got a lot of cricket ahead of him,” he said.
“So there’s a massive duty of care to make sure that he’s fully fit for the rest of his career. It’s obviously exciting to see him in an England tracksuit and bowling, he’s a superstar. But we’ll find out more over time.”
West Indies Academy secures first win of the season with 22-run DLS method victory over CCC
The West Indies Academy recorded their first win of the 2024 CG United Super50 Cup season with a 22-run DLS method win over the Combined Campuses and Colleges at the Sir Frank Worrell Memorial Ground in St. Augustine on Monday.
CCC, who were also seeking their first win of the season, were first dismissed for 174 in 39.5 overs after winning the toss and batting first.
Experienced opener Kieran Powell top scored with 46 off 42 balls including eight fours while Shaqkere Parris made 40 and Johann Jeremiah hit 33.
Jediah Blades continued his good form with the ball this season with 3-23 from six overs and was well supported by Zishan Motara who took 3-31 from his 10 overs.
Joshua Bishop also bowled well with 2-25 from 6.5 overs.
In reply, the Academy were 167-7 off 40.5 overs, 22 runs ahead of the DLS par score when the rain brought an end to proceedings.
Andrew Rambaran and Johann Layne put together a crucial eighth wicket partnership, helping the Academy recover from 118-7 in the 29th over.
Rambaran finished 37* while Layne finished 25* off 28 balls including two fours and two sixes.
Earlier, Rivaldo Clarke top scored with 38. Romario Greaves was excellent with the ball for the CCC with 5-45 from his 10 overs while the other two wickets were split between Akeem Jordan and Abhijai Mansingh.
Full Scores:
Combined Campuses and Colleges 174 off 39.5 overs (Kieran Powell 46, Shaqkere Parris 40, Johann Jeremiah 33, Jediah Blades 3-23, Zishan Motara 3-31, Joshua Bishop 2-25)
West Indies Academy 167-7 off 40.5 overs (Rivaldo Clarke 38, Andrew Rambaran 37*, Johann Layne 25*, Romario Greaves 5-45).
Molineux stars with 64 as Melbourne Renegades Women win second match in a row
Hayley Matthews and Deandra Dottin’s Melbourne Renegades Women got their second win in a row in the Women’s Big Bash League thanks to a brilliant batting display from captain Sophie Molineux against Adelaide Strikers Women at the Junction Oval in Melbourne on Sunday.
The Renegades, chasing 158 for victory, found themselves 52-5 in the ninth over when Molineux came to the crease to join Dottin.
The pair put on a crucial 79 runs before Dottin fell for 20. Seven runs later, Molineux fell for a match-winning 32-ball 64 including nine fours and three sixes.
Eventually needing six runs off the final over, Nicole Faltum and Sarah Coyte guided the Renegades to victory.
Darcie Brown, Amanda-Jade Wellington and Jemma Barsby took two wickets, each, for the Strikers in their efforts to defend what looked like a match-winning total.
Earlier, captain Talia McGrath led the way with 64 off 44 balls including eight fours and a six while Orla Prendergast supported well with 31 as the Strikers made 157-5 from their 20 overs after winning the toss.
Molineux took 2-39 from her four overs while Georgia Wareham and Alice Capsey split two wickets. Matthews and Dottin when wicketless in seven overs between them.
Australia recover from middle-order collapse to win Pakistan opener
Australia rallied to overcome Pakistan by two wickets in the first of three one-day internationals between the teams at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Roared on by vocal travelling support, Pakistan were in the ascendency when their pacemen dropped Australia from 113-2 to 115-7, with the hosts chasing 204 for victory.
Harif Rauf dismissed three while Shaheen Shah Afridi and Mohammad Hasnain also got in on the act to decimate the hosts' middle order.
Naseem Shah had earlier scored 40 off 39 balls to salvage a score of 203 all out for the tourists, but a crucial cameo from captain Pat Cummins got Australia over the line.
Cummins calmly came up with an unbeaten 32 from 31 balls as the hosts sealed victory with 16.3 overs remaining, with even Sean Abbott's error in being run out for 13 failing to inspire a change in the momentum.
Bowler Mitchell Starc told ABC Grandstand after the match: "We probably didn't like that Patty and I had pads on, but it's a positive start to the summer.
"A win is a win no matter how you get there."
Data Debrief: Cummins leads from the front
Cummins' unbeaten 32 may not go down as his most memorable knock in ODIs, but it did equal his best innings for Australia in the format.
That proved crucial after Matthew Short (1), Jake Fraser-McGurk (16), Marnus Labuschagne (16), Aaron Hardie (10) and Glenn Maxwell (0) disappointed with the bat.
Australia, who have won both of their ODI series versus West Indies and England since lifting the World Cup in 2023, can now seal a series triumph in Adelaide on Friday.
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