England have finalised their 15-man Cricket World Cup squad after dropping Jason Roy from the provisional list in favour of Harry Brook.
Here, the PA news agency looks at how the decision was reached and what it means.
How big of a surprise is Roy’s omission?
Roy has been a mainstay of the team for the past eight years and forged one of the most productive opening partnerships in history alongside Jonny Bairstow. Just a few months ago, travelling to India without him would have looked a fanciful notion, but things have changed quickly.
His form over the last four-year cycle has been patchy – well below what came before – and when back spasms saw him ruled out of the recent series against New Zealand, question over the opener’s place got louder and louder by the day.
So was it an issue of form or fitness?
Surely both. Had Roy been in peak condition he would have faced the Black Caps and been in control of his own destiny.
The back spasms, which came in two separate bursts, were a concern on the eve of the tournament that will test the durability of players over seven weeks. But England are not hiding behind that issue and the selectors were also mindful that Roy was no longer undroppable.
His influence has been on the slide for a while and he was also axed from the T20 squad just before last year’s World Cup. In summary, Brook was backed as a superior option.
Is this the end of his international career?
It would not be a surprise if Roy has played his last England match.
A wider changing of the guard is expected once the tournament is completed and with Roy already losing his place in the T20 team last year, he could have reached the end of the road.
Earlier this year he cancelled the remainder of his ECB central contract to take up a deal in the United States’ Major League Cricket and, at 33, life as a hired hand on the franchise circuit may appeal.
What about the reserve list?
England will have the chance to take three additional squad members as travelling cover, but it could be too much to expect Roy to fill that role in the circumstances.
Instead, they may look to the second string who start an ODI series against Ireland on Wednesday. That brings the likes of Ben Duckett, Phil Salt and Will Jacks into consideration, with the latter’s spin bowling an interesting factor.
Who made the decision?
Head coach Matthew Mott and captain Jos Buttler both have a key say in the team they lead, with the influential director of cricket Rob Key and national selector Luke Wright also involved. None were in post when a similar move was made in 2019 to bring Jofra Archer in at David Willey’s expense.
How did Brook make his case?
On the face of it, the Yorkshireman put in a modest audition during three innings in the recent New Zealand series, totalling just 37 runs. But he has had an exceptional start to his international career, including some eye-catching efforts in this summer’s Ashes.
His immediate reaction to being left out of the provisional squad – a blistering century in The Hundred, followed by rapid knocks of 43 not out and 67 in T20s against the Black Caps, was exactly the response required to inspire a U-turn.
Will he come straight into the team?
Dawid Malan is inked in to open with Bairstow after a prolific spell standing in for Roy. He goes about his business in a different way to Roy, a slower starter but a more consistent scorer, but has thoroughly earned his chance.
Brook will likely start the tournament as the spare batter but has the versatility to cover any of the top six. At some point during a seven-week competition, he should get his opportunity.
ECB chief insists no decision made on Mott future
England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive Richard Gould has denied reports a decision has already been made on Matthew Mott's future as white-ball coach.
Mott's future has been called into question in the aftermath of England's failure to defend their T20 World Cup crown in the United States and West Indies, losing to India in the semi-finals.
Mott also oversaw England's calamitous 50-over World Cup campaign last year, as they lost six of their nine matches in India and crashed out in the group stage.
Reports earlier this week suggested the decision had already been made to dispense with Mott's services, with Eoin Morgan a contender to succeed him, though the former limited-overs captain has since said he has no interest in the role.
Asked by BBC Test Match Special if Mott's future had already been decided, Gould said: "That's not true. That's certainly not true.
"Matthew Mott is a really good guy and coach. He's got a great track record and it is the same with [captain] Jos [Buttler].
"We are always assessing options - that is what happens in high-performance sport, you are always assessing your options.
"You never want to be drawn into being given the dreaded vote of confidence or anything like that. Competitive sport always brings scrutiny and decisions.
"We'll constantly want to assess our options but we'll always want to do the right thing by the sport, the team and individuals."
West Indies grab three late wickets on day one as third Test against England in the balance
England lost three wickets in a dramatic end to day one of the third Test against West Indies, leaving them in a precarious position after restricting the tourists for 282.
Gus Atkinson finished with figures of 4-67, while Chris Woakes took 3-69 for England, as only a fine sixth-wicket stand from Jason Holder and Joshua Da Silva saved West Indies from being bowled out for a much lower total.
But England, chasing a 3-0 series whitewash, let their dominant position slip when taking up the bat for the final 35 minutes, Zak Crawley (18), Ben Duckett (3) and Mark Wood (0) being dispatched as bowler Jayden Seales dropped them to 38-3.
Windies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite won the toss and chose to bat, leading his side to a solid start before a spell of three wickets in five overs before lunch put England on top.
Atkinson accounted for Mikyle Louis (26) and Alick Athanaze (2) on either side of Wood sending stumps flying with a full delivery to dismiss Kirk McKenize for 12.
Brathwaite's knock of 61 was brought to a halt shortly after the action resumed, the captain gloving Wood's leg-side ball to Jamie Smith as the tourists slid from 76-0 to 115-5 in 45 balls.
Holder (59) and Da Silva (49) then shared 108 to drag the Windies towards a respectable total, but things looked bleak for them when the latter feathered Woakes' ball through to Smith.
Having gone 30 overs without a wicket, England needed just 14 more to polish off the tail, the highlight being a terrific diving catch from Joe Root to send Gudakesh Motie (8) packing.
England were given just over half an hour with the bat to cap Friday's action, but any hopes of a serene finish were soon dashed.
Holder made two terrific catches off Seales' bowling, the first from Crawley's thick outside edge and the second to dismiss Wood for a duck, either side of Alzarri Joseph's cracking delivery accounting for Duckett.
That spell ensured what had been a good day for the hosts ended on a sour note, with the Windies sure to target quick wickets when the action resumes on Saturday.
Data Debrief: Atkinson and Seales dominate
This series began with all the focus on James Anderson as England's greatest-ever bowler bowed out at Lord's, but Atkinson has taken centre-stage since making his Test debut in the opening match and now has 20 wickets through five innings.
That is eight more than West Indies' Jayden Seales, the next-most prolific bowler in this series, has managed.
Seales was determined to have an impact on day one, though, and his two wickets at the death have set the stage for a far more competitive match than those England won at Lord's and Trent Bridge.
McAllister cannot see Klopp or Guardiola succeeding Southgate
Gary McAllister finds it hard to believe that either Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola will succeed Gareth Southgate as England manager.
Southgate, who led England to back-to-back European Championship finals, ended his eight-year tenure following their defeat to Spain in the Euro 2024 showpiece.
The 53-year-old was often accused of a cautious approach despite only Walter Winterbottom (383) and Alf Ramsey (224) overseeing more England goals than his 213, with supporters wanting to see a more attack-minded manager take over.
And two of the names linked with the vacant position have been pioneers of Premier League football in recent years.
Klopp ended his nine-year stay at Liverpool in May to take a break from management, while some expect Guardiola to leave Manchester City at the end of his current deal, which expires next year.
The pair have won 653 games between them and shared 25 major honours during their time in England and could be seen as the ideal candidates to end the Three Lions' 58-year wait for silverware.
However, former Liverpool and Scotland midfielder McAllister believes Klopp and Guardiola are unlikely to become England's next manager.
McAllister, who played 57 times for his nation, believes supporters would prefer an English manager at the helm.
"I think people are linking Jurgen with the England job purely because he has experience working in the English Premier League," McAllister told Stats Perform.
"He's worked with elite players for many years now at Dortmund and at Liverpool. So people are putting two and two together.
"Personally, I don't see it happening and I think I also see that there were links to Pep Guardiola and I don't see Pep managing England either.
"It's hard for me to comment on this because I'm obviously not English, I'm Scottish.
"The people I speak to within the game, there is a feeling that the manager of England should come from St George's Park, which is the headquarters of English football, the FA and all the coaching programmes that they have there.
"Why would you have all this and then put a manager not from England in? I think most of the people in England are looking for an English manager."
The Three Lions' next game is a Nations League clash with the Republic of Ireland in September, with Finland their next opponents three days later.
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