England fields fresh XI in first ODI against Ireland

Two days after the Test series victory against the West Indies, England flaunts fresh look with a revamped XI in the first ODI against Ireland in Southampton.

A revampled England team celebrates a dismissal in the first ODI against Ireland in Southampton on Thursday.

 

How often do you see a cricket team fielding a different XI in an ODI within two days of a Test series triumph? England, which already has two different captains in Joe Root and Eoin Morgan in red-ball and white-ball cricket respectively, chose a unique squad for the three-match ODI series against Ireland.

Allowing the star ODI regulars, who were part of the Test squad, in such a short turnaround time would have meant a breach of bio-secure protocols. There was no window for quarantine, plus it could have led to workload issues as the red-ball side is set to face Pakistan in a three-Test series starting August 5 in Manchester. 

The 11 players in the first ODI against Ireland in Southampton on Thursday are a fresh stock which speaks volumes about England’s bench strength. Besides Morgan, Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and Adil Rashid are the other players from the victorious World Cup final XI in 2019.

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ODI and Test balance

Roy and Moeen Ali did not feature in Tests since the Ashes, while Bairstow’s last red-ball outing came against South Africa in December 2019. Leg-spinner Rashid last played a Test in January 2019 against the West Indies.

James Vince hasn’t played Tests since 2018, but he was part of the World Cup squad last year. Morgan, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Saqib Mahmood, Tom Curran [only two Tests in his career] and David Willey are limited-overs specialists.

David Willey, who narrowly missed out on selection for the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup 2019, picked up four wickets in his first six overs against Ireland on Thursday.

 

Joe Denly is the only common name from the recently-concluded Test series. He was part of the first Test in Southampton. He, however, is benched for the first ODI. Recce Topley and Liam Dawson, who are making a comeback into the ODI side after a long gap, have been benched as well.

Regulars Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Joe Root, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and Chris Woakes are absent and missed, but the new-look pace attack looks as lethal; left-arm pacer Willey ran through the Irish top-order in the first seven overs.

The England ODI side has been training at the Ageas Bowl since July 16 once the Test action moved to Manchester.