England make best of limited ODI schedule to hone World Cup squad

S even months is an eternity in the mayflyesque lifecycle of a professional sportsperson, but that far out from October’s 50-over World Cup England’s preparations are almost done. After the completion of their ODI series against Bangladesh, their next match in the format is scheduled for just a few weeks before they head to India, and following the three T20s with which they conclude this tour the white-ball group will not meet up again until September.

This trip was originally scheduled for the autumn of 2021, but its eventual place in the calendar has proved far more useful. “This was our last opportunity to get together, and we’ve been exposed to the conditions that we want to be exposed to,” Matthew Mott, England’s white-ball coach, said. “If we’d come over here and had flat, belting wickets, it wouldn’t have been the same experience. We’ve had to work for everything and you can’t buy that. I mean, if we were asking to construct the perfect series, this is the perfect series for us.”

At the end of it, a certain amount has become clear. Of the 15-man squad he will eventually name for the World Cup, Mott says there are “seven or eight spots that you could probably lock in”. It is not hard to imagine which names are already inked in, though the only one Mott actually named was Jofra Archer, who has continued a gradual reintroduction to international cricket here. “He’s building and by the time we get to the Ashes and the World Cup, you can just see he’s ticking all the boxes to get back to his best,” said Mott.

Beyond individuals there are certain types of players that are desired: Mott’s ideal XI would contain, for most matches in India, “three spin options and a little bit of variety in that as well”. So Liam