LONDON: Alex Hales’s long international exile is over after he was recalled to the England squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia as a replacement for the injured Jonny Bairstow. The 33-year-old Nottinghamshire batsman has not represented his country for three-and-a-half years, having been dumped on the eve of the 2019 World Cup in the aftermath of two failed recreational drug tests. While his official ban only totalled 21 days, in line with England and Wales Cricket Board policy, he was left out in the cold after what then white-ball captain Eoin Morgan described as a “complete breakdown in trust”. Now, with Morgan retired, Bairstow sidelined by a “freak” leg injury and fellow opener Jason Roy dropped due to lack of form, circumstances have combined to hand Hales a fresh chance. Hales recently became the first Englishman to reach 10,000 runs in the Twenty20 format, and also has useful experience in Australia’s Big Bash League so knows the tournament pitches well. The hard-hitting batter has scored 1,644 runs in 60 T20 internationals at an average of 31, with a strike rate of more than 136 per 100 balls. The T20 World Cup starts on October 16.