Hales, Plunkett not included in 55-man camp
Alex Hales and World Cup-winner Liam Plunkett were both left out of a mammoth 55-man England training group announced Friday. But 14 uncapped players were selected as England look to stage a full Test and limited-overs programme against West Indies, Pakistan, Ireland and Australia despite the coronavirus delaying the start of their home season until at least July.
Among those recalled was David Willey, who lost his place in the ODI squad to Jofra Archer shortly before England won the World Cup for the first time last year.
Official squads will be named at a later date, with three Tests against the West Indies set to be played behind closed doors at bio-secure venues, such as Old Trafford in Manchester, first up for England this season.
The group will not train in one place, but with individual sessions across several county venues, that started with bowlers back in the nets last week, the only form of training allowed at present.
"The pool of players will give selectors strong options when it comes to selecting squads across formats further down the line, as we move closer to our aim of playing international cricket this summer," said ECB performance director Mo Bobat, who helped England coach Chris Silverwood and the selectors compile the list.
Nottinghamshire opener Hales was dropped shortly before last year's World Cup after it emerged he had tested positive for drugs.
There had been speculation that, with England likely to need separate red and white-ball squads, Hales might be recalled.
But England one-day captain Eoin Morgan dashed Hales' hopes on Wednesday when he said "it will take more time" for him to regain the trust of the squad.
What to Watch
Bundesliga
Star Sports Select 2
Wolfsburg v Eintracht Frankfurt
Live from 7:30pm
Bayern Munich v Fortune Dusseldorf
Live from 10:30pm
Star Sports Select 1
Schalke v Werder Bremen
Live from 7:30pm
Comments