Three Lions have announced their squad to face the West Indies, where they are scheduled to play a bilateral series, shortly after the Ashes. The Englishmen could see as many as three debutants in their side, as George Garton, David Payne and Phil Salt have been handed maiden call-ups. However, the squad has retained the core set of players who were part of their successful World Cup campaign, where they reached the semi-finals.
The five-game T20I series is scheduled to start in Barbados just four days after the last Ashes Test, which meant that the members of the Ashes squad were ineligible for selection for the series. In addition, injuries to Jofra Archer, Sam Curran, and David Willey have left the English management scrambling to find suitable replacements.
England have decided to stick with Morgan as captain, despite being quite poor with the bat in recent times. Eleven out of the sixteen players picked in the side were also part of the squad that played at the T20 World Cup in the UAE.
The series against the Windies could indicate the start of England’s preparations for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia. England are also scheduled for six T20Is in July followed up by seven in September, before travelling to Australia to play three T20Is just before the start of the mega event.
With Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan, and Jonny Bairstow all unavailable, England’s top-order will be an interesting affair, with Phil Salt likely to feature in the majority of the games, after a consistent run of performances in domestic and international T20 leagues over the last few years. Salt recently finished as the highest scorer in the Abu Dhabi T10 League and also did exceedingly well in the Lanka Premier League.
However, Tom Banton’s inclusion into the side comes as a bit of a surprise, with the right-hander suffering a lean run of form over the last 18 months. However, his past performances have given him the edge over other young promising talents like Joe Clarke, Ben Duckett, and Tom Kohler-Cadmore.
Meanwhile, in the bowling department, England have a plethora of left-arm pacers, in spite of Sam Curran’s absence, with Tymal Mills, Reece Topley, David Payne, and George Garton– all making the cut. However, Lancashire leg-spinner Matt Parkinson’s inclusion was somewhat of a surprise, although he is understood to have been included in the list of reserve players. Liam Dawson has been chosen over Parkinson, as he is believed to be the more versatile option among the two, given his abilities with the bat as well.
The bilateral series will imply that six players- Sam Billings, Garton, Mahmood, Mills, Topley, and James Vince- will miss out on the knockout stages of the Big Bash League, should their teams qualify, whereas a further seven- Jordan, Livingstone, Mahmood, Jason Roy, Salt, Topley, and Vinc e- will be forced to skip the opening rounds of the PSL.
Former captain and all-rounder Paul Collingwood will take up the role of head coach, while Marcus Trescothick will be his deputy. England are also looking for a batting, bowling, and fielding coach, in addition to Trescothick and Collingwood.
“The World Cup is less than a year away and there will be increased opportunities for the squad in the absence of those players who are with the Ashes squad. We have selected a strong squad with some serious batting power and a balanced attack as we begin preparations ahead of the T20 World Cup in Australia,”
he said.
