It is a mark of the expectations around this England team that holes were picked in the first two performances of this series and it is rare for Eoin Morgan to sound as satisfied with an outing as he did in Nottingham – although if he wasn’t happy then, he may never be. Still, the perfect day in a bilateral one-day series against a poor team is one thing. England will want to save a few for this time next year. After a perfect display, perhaps the one thing England would like is a few more wickets with the new ball. Mark Wood has taken two scalps in three matches with Australia, by and large, not having too many alarms against his new-ball spells only to repeatedly stumble when spin is introduced. That’s working fine for England now, but if they can make impact with the new ball – which highlights the significance of Chris Woakes’ absence – they become even more formidable. And there’s a daunting thought.
In the spotlight: Joe Root isn’t a slogger. He almost managed a wry smile when he walked out at No. 7 at Trent Bridge. It will have been one of the least-pressurised situations he will ever have batted – and he barely middled one shot. His fifty in the opening match, when England had lost three early wickets, showed how important his role in the side remains. He purred to a half-century at The Oval and eased into the 20s at Cardiff, but after the pyrotechnics in Nottingham he has had the quietest series of the top order. Tim Paine admitted he hadn’t had a worse day on the cricket field in his life than Trent Bridge. He’s a good man in a difficult position. His captaincy of the one-day team is even more of a sticking plaster than with the Test side, where he at least justifies his position. It’s hard to say the same in this side. You could even suggest he isn’t the best option in this squad: Alex Carey is a talented, dynamic keeper-batsman. If Australia are serious about reviving their one-day team, Paine does not look the answer. He may have just two more matches to make a case.
Teams news: England have bolstered their pace attack by calling up Craig Overton and Sam Curran. Morgan hinted at the potential for changes due to the lengthy journey from Nottingham to Durham and the short turnaround between games. Tom Curran and Jake Ball were already part of the squad, so may get first dibs. What can Australia do? Shuffling deckchairs on the Titanic springs to mind. Justin Langer has suggested Nathan Lyon could get a call-up, although that may create issues with the tail. Andrew Tye may need to be benched after a tough couple of games. Aaron Finch’s move to No. 5 hasn’t worked, either.
Squads:
England (probable) 1 Jason Roy, 2 Jonny Bairstow, 3 Alex Hales, 4 Joe Root, 5 Eoin Morgan (capt), 6 Jos Buttler (wk), 7 Moeen Ali, 8 David Willey, 9 Liam Plunkett/Jake Ball, 10 Adil Rashid, 11 Mark Wood/Tom Curran
Australia (probable) 1 D’Arcy Short, 2 Travis Head, 3 Shaun Marsh, 4 Marcus Stoinis, 5 Aaron Finch, 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Tim Paine (capt & wk), 8 Ashton Agar, 9 Jhye Richardson, 10 Kane Richardson, 11 Billy Stanlake.
Published in Daily Times, June 21st 2018.
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