Mooen Ali and Jonny Bairstow. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)
England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is likely to take a harsh call on the seniors and axe them from the white-ball set-up. After an embarrassing performance in the ODI World Cup 2023 and a subpar showing in the T20 World Cup 2024, the management has called for change, which may see the likes of Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali losing their place in the squad.
After a defeat in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup, there were doubts whether Jos Buttler would continue as captain in the white-ball formats. Head coach Matthew Mott resigned from his position which put the keeper-batter under more pressure. England are due to announce their squad for the Australia series and that’s when more is expected to come to light as it needs to be seen if Buttler gets removed or will continue as captain, keeping the Champions Trophy in mind.
Also Read – England miss Ben Stokes, but they will miss Mark Wood more: Michael Vaughan
As per a report in The Telegraph, Jacob Bethell will earn his debut call-up in the Australia series. The 20-year-old has played 16 List A matches and 44 T20 games and has scored 339 and 731 runs, respectively. With the ball, he has 22 wickets in white-ball cricket. With him coming into the set-up, England are likely to move on from Moeen Ali.
Jonny Bairstow, who played a pivotal part in England’s success in the ODI World Cup 2019, flopped massively in the last two ICC tournaments. He was recently dropped from Test cricket as well and it’s likely that England will look beyond him now. It’s unclear who can replace Bairstow in the team but the management can back Jamie Smith, who has done a fantastic job in Test cricket.
Apart from Bairstow and Moeen, Liam Livingstone’s spot is also under threat. ECB has liked the profile of Warwickshire batting all-rounder Saqib Mahmood, who can feature in the upcoming series, which is slated to begin on September 11.