Cricket Australia took the unusual step of naming an extended 26-man squad for an upcoming tour of England in September. Having lost out to England at the World Cup in 2019, Australia will be out to prove a point against their traditional rivals. While no official word that the tour will go ahead, Cricket Australia is understandably keen to cash in after the T20 World Cup was postponed.
The six-match white-ball tour was originally planned for June, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
As we work towards a return to international cricket, the National Selection Panel today named a preliminary list for the ODI and T20I tour of England.
— Cricket Australia (@CricketAus) July 16, 2020
Read all of the info: https://t.co/CegGe6RQge pic.twitter.com/GofcHw7Mk3
There were several surprises in the squad with the Australian team naming up and coming stars Josh Philippe and Riley Meredith. The extended squad includes fringe all-rounders Daniel Sams, Sean Abbott and Michael Neser.
There were recalls for all-rounder Marcus Stoinis, as well as top-order batsman Usman Khawaja. Glen Maxwell returns to the squad, along with veteran paceman Andrew Tye.
The squad is tipped to be trimmed once confirmation that the tour will go ahead. Chairman of selectors Trevor Hohns viewed the extended squad as a chance to plan for the future:
“The preliminary list includes several exciting young players who have recently excelled at state level and in the BBL. These emerging players are those we would like to develop further as we believe they have a bright future in Australian cricket. The preliminary list also has a view towards the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup and in the longer term the 2023 ICC World Cup.”
Talks between the tour cricket boards are ongoing, but the Australians would have to enter into a quarantine hub, under strict bio-security rules for the tour to move ahead. The West Indies underwent weeks of isolation before the start of their Test series against England. The West Indies currently lead the Test series 1-0.
JUST IN: Fast bowler Jofra Archer has been left out of the second #ENGvWI Test after breaching England's bio-secure protocols. pic.twitter.com/u9Gw9WWskR
— ICC (@ICC) July 16, 2020
England’s preparation for the second Test took a hammering after pace bowler Jofra Archer was booted out of the squad. Archer broke strict quarantine guidelines put in place for the Test series to go-ahead. The English quick was found to have taken an unscheduled detour, while driving himself to Manchester for the second Test. The lanky quick was removed from the squad over bio-security concerns, and now enters five days of isolation.
England hasn’t named a replacement for Archer but his absence hasn’t affected the odds of levelling the series.
Second Test Odds England vs West Indies
England: 8/15
West Indies: 10/3
Draw: 6/1
Odds courtesy of Odds Checker
