Will Jacks out of Bangladesh tour with injury to put brakes on World Cup push

Will Jacks has suffered a setback as he attempts to push his way into England’s World Cup reckoning after he was ruled out of the remainder of the tour of Bangladesh with a thigh injury. The 24-year-old made his first ODI appearance in Mirpur last week to complete a full set of international debuts within the space of six months, but injury now looks set to apply the brakes to his ascent.

With Jacks out, the series won and spin reinforcement required – England bowled 46.2 overs of it across the first two games of the series, through Jacks, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid – Rehan Ahmed is likely to make his international white-ball debut in Monday’s final ODI. The 18-year-old was ruled out of the first game through illness but has fully recovered, impressing in recent training sessions.

“He is the real deal,” Mark Wood said on Sunday. “He’s got youthful enthusiasm and excitement and it’s as if he’s playing a club game. He just wants to bowl and whack it. He has a nature about him which is just lovely to see. It’s quite infectious and I am really looking forward to seeing how he goes. When he played his Test match, it was like it was not a big deal, and I think he will be exactly the same in whatever format it is. I know the pressure might be on a little bit more in one-dayers where people try to whack you, but I think he will deal with it fine.”

Before last Wednesday’s opening ODI Jacks had not played a 50-over game of any kind since 2019, but his record in Twenty20 cricket – and his ability to bowl useful off-spin – has forced him into England’s white-ball reckoning. In 102 career innings in the format he averages 29.8 with a fearsome strike rate of 157.9, memorably scoring a 48-ball 108 for Oval Invincibles in last year’s