World Cup door not closed on Brook, says England captain Buttler

AFP / Oli Scarff

Harry Brook may nonetheless be a part of England’s World Cup title defence regardless of failing to discover a place within the unique 15-member squad for the 50-overs cricket showpiece occasion in India later this 12 months, skipper Jos Buttler stated.

With Ben Stokes again within the squad after reversing his retirement from the one-day format, England dropped Brook – whose explosive batting was in full show on Tuesday when he smashed a 41-ball century in The Hundred competitors – from the lineup.

But the 24-year-old is about to journey to India as a reserve participant, and England can change their provisional squad till September 28.

“There’s still a long time before everyone’s meant to get on the plane, so we’ll wait and see what happens,” Buttler stated on Friday.

“We all know Harry’s a improbable participant, and we noticed what he can do the opposite night time. It’s not prefer it’s a shock, we all know what a superb participant he’s.

“He’s just the unfortunate one at the moment to not be in that squad. Ben Stokes coming back and being available just as a batter changes the dynamic a little bit.”

A key architect of England’s World Cup triumphs in 2019 (ODI) and 2022 (T20), check captain Stokes introduced his shock ODI retirement in July final 12 months, citing his workload. But he reversed course this month and was picked for the upcoming residence collection in opposition to New Zealand.

England is very happy to greet him again into the ODI squad, though the talismanic all-rounder, who has been grappling with a hard knee of late, will play as a specialist batter.

“Ben’s a fantastic player to be able to welcome back,” Buttler stated.

“It’s a really tough selection, there have been players performing really well over a period of time, and that’s where we are at the minute.”

England will start their title defence in opposition to New Zealand in Ahmedabad on October 5 in a rematch of the 2019 closing.