England, the current No.1 team in ODIs and the hosts for the upcoming World Cup, announced their squad for the tournament on Tuesday. The final 15 was selected form the 17-man squad that played the five-match ODI series against Pakistan.
From the 17 players that played the series, David Willey and Joe Denly were left out. The youngster Jofra Archer who was born in Barbados was selected ahead of Willey. On the other hand, Denly lost his World Cup spot to all-rounder Liam Dawson who bowls slow left-arm orthodox spin.
Former English skipper Michael Vaughan reckons that this is the right squad. He then went on to add, “It’s the right squad. Willey will be desperately disappointed but they’ve picked the right team They needed that spare spinner and that’s why Dawson is in. It’s the right squad,” on Instagram
Vaughan also tweeted about the World Cup squad which read, “‘The right squad selected by England imo… Now play brave, smart, intelligent cricket and get the luck of the Irish and this could be out time…”
Here is the Tweet from Michael Vaughan:
The right squad selected by England imo ... Now Play brave,smart,intelligent cricket & get the luck of the Irish and this could be our time ... #England #CWC2019
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) May 21, 2019
Nasser Hussain, another former England skipper thinks that this is the best squad England have ever picked. While talking to SkySports about the World Cup squad, Hussain said, ”The first thing to say is that’s the best squad England have ever picked for a World Cup. It is a phenomenal lineup of cricketers, especially in the batting department.”
When asked about Archer getting selected ahead of Willey, the former England player who appeared in 88 ODIs said, “They’ve made the right call in having Archer in that squad. Absolutely; 100 per cent. He had to play. He is such a rare talent, a game-changer, a wicket-taker.”
The 51-year-old then went on to back Archer’s selection by saying, “One thing is for certain, I don’t think England will lose the World Cup because they went for Archer over Willey. It’s now how they play that’s going to be important."
As England take on Australia with David Warner and Steve Smith back after the 12-month ban in the warm-up match on Saturday (May 25), it will be interesting to see how the squad performs.
(Inputs from SkySports)
