Ahead of the first ODI against Australia at Old Trafford, we’ve put together our predicted England XI.
Eoin Morgan’s men start a three-match series against on the Aussies on Friday after triumphing 2-1 in the recent T20I contests.
England are, of course, the reigning World Champions but lost by seven wickets to Ireland last time out in this format.
Chris Silverwood has a stronger squad of players available this time around, though, with Ben Stokes the only player – other than Liam Plunkett – missing from the team that triumphed over New Zealand in the 2019 World Cup final.
After Eoin Morgan confirmed that Jason Roy is fit to play, he should open the batting alongside Jonny Bairstow, with Joe Root completing a strong top three.
Morgan himself is in good form and is likely to come in at four, while Jos Buttler is back from a few days outside of the bubble and will bat either at five or six.
Stokes’ absence damages the balance of the team, so it’s likely that Chris Woakes will play as an all-rounder batting at number seven, with one spot above him up for grabs.
Moeen Ali has been a regular for England in white-ball cricket for some time and he struck an excellent 61 against Pakistan in a T20I just ten days ago, but in this instance, he should make way for the immensely talented Tom Banton.
Banton struggled in the T20Is against the Aussies but showed in the one-dayers against Ireland and in the shortest format against Pakistan that he’s extremely dangerous with the willow in hand.
The 21-year-old deserves an opportunity against the big guns ahead of Moeen, who averages just 25.12 with the bat from 105 ODI matches and has struggled to contribute with the ball in recent years.
Sam Billings could count himself unlucky should he miss out after strong returns against Ireland but England need to go with their most powerful available top six.
In terms of the bowlers, Adil Rashid is a shoo-in as the main spinner, while Mark Wood and Jofra Archer should both also play as the hosts look to unsettle the tourists with pace.
Brothers, Tom and Sam Curran, would then be battling it out for the final berth in the team, with the former probably the more deserving of the spot.
Sam remains an option for the later matches if England’s all-right-arm attack proves to be too short on variety, but Tom played in the Ireland series and was impressive in the T20Is against the Aussies, so should retain his place first up.
England Predicted XI to face Australia in first ODI:
- Jason Roy
- Jonny Bairstow
- Joe Root
- Eoin Morgan (c)
- Tom Banton
- Jos Buttler (wk)
- Chris Woakes
- Tom Curran
- Adil Rashid
- Jofra Archer
- Mark Wood