England Face Pakistan and Sri Lanka in ODI Tri-Series as World Cup Preparation Heats Up

With the ICC World Cup a year away, Harry Brook and England begin their preparations for the tournament with an ODI triangular Series. with Pakistan and Sri Lanka.

The Tri-series will be the first of seven one-day series England will play leading up to next year’s tournament in South Africa. Zimbabwe and Namibia.

Here is England’s Squad for the Series:

Harry Brook (captain). Gus Atkinson. Sonny Baker. Tom Banton. James Coles. Jordan Cox. Mason Crane. Henry Crocombe. Sam Curran. Liam Dawson. Ben Duckett. Will Jacks. Jamie Overton. Adil Rashid. Joe Root. Josh Tongue.

1. Can Jacks continue to thrive with bat and ball?

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Over the years, the Three Lions have produced fine seam-bowling all-rounders such as Andrew Flintoff and Ben Stokes.

However, since Graeme Swann’s retirement in 2013 and Moeen Ali’s departure in 2024, England are still searching for the perfect spin-bowling all-rounder who can score runs down the order and pick up wickets in the middle overs.

Since his 2023 debut, Jacks has taken 16 wickets in 29 ODIs at an average of 38.25 and an economy of 5.93.

This is a handy record for an off-spinning all-rounder. His primary asset in ODIs is his batting, with 802 runs at an average of 34.86. and a strike rate of 100.88.

With the pitches in Pakistan as flat as roads, it’ll be fascinating to see whether he can stem the flow of runs from two nations accustomed to playing spin.

2. Crane to compete with Rashid for frontline spinner role

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With 243 wickets in 164 ODIs, Adil Rashid is 26 wickets away from eclipsing Sir James Anderson as England’s most successful bowler in this format.

Every time they require a wicket, he, alongside Jofra Archer – who is taking a break for this series – is usually the one who delivers when it matters.

But with Rashid approaching the twilight stage of his career, will it pave the way for Mason Crane to be his successor?

Crane, who has played one Test and two T20Is, will be looking to compete with the veteran leg spinner for a spot on the plane to South Africa.

There is also Rehan Ahmed waiting in the wings.

You would like to think that Brook will begin the series with Rashid and try to bed in Crane later on.

Can he give England’s selectors something to think about when next year’s World Cup approaches?

3. Can top order continue blistering form?

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Tom Banton, Ben Duckett, and Harry Brook were in great form in the three-match series, with Banton the standout batter with 209 runs at an average of 69.66.

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Though Joe Root wasn’t heavily involved in the runs against Sri Lanka, he has still had a strong year in ODI cricket, with 249 runs in the three-match series against India.

He remained not out in all three ODIs, making him the first batter in ODIs to score the most runs without being dismissed in an entire series.

The best ODI sides always have a strong top three, who are consistent in run scoring.

Think about India’s Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli. It’s very rare that the Men in Blue post or chase down a score of 300+ without a big score from at least one of them.

For England to consistently be a top ODI side, they need more runs from their top three.

Can they be amongst the runs in Pakistan?

4. Time to introduce fresh faces?

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A new series offers an opportunity to introduce fresh faces into the squad, one of which is James Coles, the young left-arm spinner from Sussex.

In the summer of 2020, Coles became Sussex’s youngest debutant at the age of 16 in their Bob Willis Trophy game against Surrey at the KIA Oval.

Coles represented England in the 2022 Under-19 World Cup, where Tom Prest’s side made the final, but lost to India.

After scoring his maiden first-class century against Glamorgan in 2023, Coles was then included in the England Lions squad soon after, where he made his debut against India A.

In 2024, he had a big hand in Sussex’s run to the T20 Vitality Blast semi-finals, with match-winning figures of 2-9 in the quarter-final against Lancashire.

It’ll be fascinating to see what he can do on the international stage, should he get the opportunity.

5. Figure out your best XI

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With the World Cup just over a year away, it gives Harry Brook and Brendon McCullum the opportunity to have a look at players and decide on a potential starting XI.

The key things you want to know as captain are: who plays well in certain situations? What works? What doesn’t work? Bowling combinations.

On paper, England’s strongest XI is Ben Duckett, Tom Banton, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jos Buttler (WK), Will Jacks, Jamie Overton/Sam Curran, Jofra Archer (rested for this series), Adil Rashid, Brydon Carse, and Gus Atkinson.

However, Brook may have other options that he would like to try out, for example, a four-seamer and one spinner attack. That would ideally suit the conditions in South Africa.

How the 27-year-old leads his team in this series may well dictate England’s blueprint at next year’s World Cup.

So those were the five things to watch out for in England’s Tri-Series in Pakistan.

Let us know if there are any more on World in Sport.