England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has announced a 16-man squad for the three-match ODI series against Pakistan, which will begin on July 8.
Top-order batsman Tom Banton has retained his spot after joining the squad for the third and last ODI against Sri Lanka on Sunday (July 04). Eoin Morgan & Co. is already leading the series 2-0 and would be hoping for a clean sweep in the final game of the ODI leg.
All the ODI series are part of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League, and currently, two teams (Australia and Pakistan) are tied up with 40 points, with the Men in Green occupying third place because of a better net run-rate.
England is right at the top with 60 points, while Bangladesh has grabbed the second spot with 50 points.
“I think it will be a very good series,” England off-spinner Moeen Ali said in a press release.
“Pakistan are normally a very good side, they give us good games, and I think they’ll be a stronger opposition than Sri Lanka, which means you get more of a chance to bat and bowl as a player who’s down the order, for example, and hasn’t been bowling much.
“Definitely, they are one of the best [T20I] teams in the world, along with West Indies, India, Australia,’ he said. “I think Pakistan are our bogey team in World Cups; they always seem to do really well against us, so we can’t take them lightly at all. They are a fantastic team with quality players.”
The Three Lions squad for the three-match T20I series versus Pakistan, which follows the three ODIs, will be announced in the third week of July.
The 50-overs matches will be played in Cardiff, London and Birmingham on July 8, 10 and 13, while the T20Is will take place in Nottingham, Leeds and Manchester on July 16, 18 and 20, respectively.
England’s ODI squad for Pakistan series:
Eoin Morgan (captain), Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Adil Rashid, Moeen Ali, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, George Garton, Liam Livingstone, David Willey, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood.
