Head coach Matthew Mott says they are close to
selecting their starting XI for the tournament’s opening match against New
Zealand as England prepares to depart for India on Wednesday night to defend
their ODI World Cup crown.
The 15 members of the 15-over reigning champions, plus
Jofra Archer as the only travelling reserve, leave London on Sunday. The
three-match ODI series this week against Ireland was played by a reserve team
and concluded on Tuesday with another washout at Bristol. The hosts came away with
the most understated of 1-0 victories after winning at Trent Bridge on Saturday
in the lone ODI that was played.
However, Tuesday’s raucous start of 280 for 4 after 31
overs before the rain came was a severe test of English depth, as did the
performance in Nottingham. The golden generation is now poised to retake
control as Jos Buttler’s team strives for what would be a legacy-confirming
third ICC trophy in less than four years.
Apart from Archer’s ongoing recuperation from a
long-standing right elbow condition, England doesn’t appear to have any other
fitness concerns. He would only be used off the bench in the event of an injury
during the competition’s later stages. Adil Rashid’s calf and Mark Wood’s heel
are both stated to be in good condition.
Mott thinks he and captain Buttler have a good idea of
their lineup for that opening game on October 5 after a month of trial and
error against the same opponents in a 2-2 T20I series and 3-1 ODI victory, but
given that England will be playing at eight different venues across their nine
group games, he anticipates going deeper into the squad this time, as opposed
to using just 13 players four years ago.
“We’re close but it’s still a while away,”
Mott said. “And we don’t know how guys will pull up, [it is] a quick
turnaround when we land in India. We’ve got a rough idea, then it’s about
opposition, whether we go batter-heavy, bowler-heavy. The squad we have picked
gives us great flexibility.
“I do [expect to use more than 13], because of
the venues, the travel, certain players thrive, others don’t go so well. That’s
why when you pick the squad, you do a lot of ‘what if?’ scenarios.”
When Dawid Malan and Harry Brook were named to the
team a week ago, England faced their first uncertainty. When the provisional team
was unveiled at the end of August, Jason Roy was the man in charge. He had been
informed of this, but now he was dealing with his second prominent snub in a
year. Even though it appeared his race
had been finished when he was forced to miss the four New Zealand one-day
matches due to back problems, Mott insisted he is still available and ready to
respond to any mayday call as an injury substitute for the competition.
“Yes, absolutely – never in question,” Mott
said, regarding Roy’s willingness to be a reserve. “He is strongly keen to
get on that plane. He is incredibly disappointed, as you would expect. He is
very determined if an opportunity opens up again that he is on that plane.
“I know a lot of people speculate about him not
playing here [against Ireland], but he was never down to play in this series.
So that was not a big thing from our point of view. This time at home for him,
if this opportunity does come up, I think it will serve him well.”