The England Cricket Board (ECB), on Wednesday, announced their preliminary 15-man squad for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. Apart from that, the 17-man and 14-man squads for the Pakistan ODI and one-off T20s against Ireland and Pakistan have also been announced.
Note that this is England’s preliminary World Cup squad and while speaking about the selection, National selector, Ed Smith said, “In line with ICC regulations, we have to name a preliminary squad of 15 for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup before April 23. The final team will be announced after the Pakistan series, which concludes on May 19.
"However, all 17 players named in the Royal London ODIs against Pakistan can stake a claim to be in the final 15-man squad, finalised at the end of that series.”
The curious case of Jofra Archer was finally answered, with Smith suggesting that the pacer will be given his chance to prove, having being named in the 17-man squad for the Pakistan ODIs.
"The selection panel has been impressed with Jofra Archer’s performances in domestic and franchise cricket. He is a very talented and exciting cricketer.
"With regard to resting players, we are conscious of managing player workloads leading into such an important summer so that players are in the best possible condition for the World Cup. That was also a factor in the way we have selected these three squads.”
Preliminary 15-man squad for world cup: Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (c), Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Alex Hales, Tom Curran, Joe Denly, David Willey
17-man squad for Pakistan ODIs: Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (c), Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Alex Hales, Tom Curran, Joe Denly, David Willey, Jofra Archer, Chris Jordan
14-man squad for Ireland ODI and Pakistan T20I: Eoin Morgan (c), Jofra Archer, Sam Billings, Tom Curran, Joe Denly, Chris Jordan, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, James Vince, David Willey, Mark Wood
Fixtures (all times GMT):
May 3: Ireland v England ODI, Dublin
May 5: England v Pakistan T20, Cardiff
May 8: England v Pakistan 1st ODI, The Oval
May 11: England v Pakistan 2nd ODI, Southampton
May 14: England v Pakistan 3rd ODI, Bristol
May 17: England v Pakistan 4th ODI, Trent Bridge
May 19: England v Pakistan 5th ODI, Headingley
