Double world champions England begin path to greatness with ODI series against Australia

There were tales of dancing on tables, head shaving and late-night singalongs but, such is life as an international cricketer, England are in 50-over action against Australia on Thursday days after lifting the T20 World Cup.

England can stake a claim to being the greatest ever white-ball side after becoming the first team to hold both World Cups and many of their T20 heroes will feature in the three-match one-day international series, which will be shown exclusively live on BT Sport.

After the celebrations subside, England’s focus will shift to next year’s 50-over World Cup in India and the defence of the title they memorably won in 2019.

Nine of the World Cup winning squad, plus Luke Wood and Liam Dawson, who were travelling reserves are in the 15-man squad for the first ODI series between the sides since 2020.

Opener Jason Roy has been recalled after a torrid spell saw him lose his place in the side and his central contract.

He has been named after a lean summer for England and Oval Invincibles in The Hundred with the bat and has an opportunity to force his way back into contention with Alex Hales not involved and viewed as a T20 specialist.

Wicketkeeper Sam Billings and James Vince have been included despite not playing an ODI since July 2021.

Pace bowler Olly Stone has also won a recall after recovering from another injury setback. The Warwickshire seamer has been beset by fitness problems but is one of England’s quickest bowlers and has the game to become a cross-format star.

Luke Wood is the only uncapped player in the squad, but the Lancashire bowler has shown promise in the early stages of his T20 international career and should play a part.

Harry Brook, Mark Wood, Alex Hales, Liam Livingstone and Tymal Mills are not involved after their World Cup exploits.

Ben Stokes, who added another defining innings to his repertoire to take England over the line in the final, retired from ODIs in July - although head coach Matthew Mott is keen to see him reverse that decision.

Asked if he would talk to Stokes about coming out of retirement, Mott said: “Absolutely. When he spoke to me about his ODI retirement, one of the first things I said was that I’d back any decision he made.

“But he didn’t necessarily have to retire, he could just not play 50 overs for a while. I did say you could always unretire.”

Australia return to 50-over action after their T20 World Cup title defence fell apart in the group stage. They were up against it after a resounding defeat to New Zealand in the opener and never really got going 12 months after their triumph in Dubai.

The hosts, who will be led by Pat Cummins for the first time in ODIs, have selected a full-strength squad for the games in Adelaide, Sydney and Melbourne.

Cummins, who has withdrawn from the IPL because of the “packed” international schedule, joins bowlers Mitchell Starch, Josh Hazlewood with spinners Adam Zampa and Ashton Agar.

Travis Head returns at the top of the order after the retirement of Aaron Finch with the 28-year-old looking to build on his excellent early-season form against Zimbabwe and New Zealand.

Glenn Maxwell was named in the squad but has been forced to withdraw after breaking his leg in an accident at a friend’s 50th birthday party. Sean Abbott has been named as his replacement.

“Our focus is to continue to build a squad with an eye to next year’s World Cup under Pat as the new ODI captain, so it’s an important series,” national selector George Bailey said.

“Travis Head has demonstrated flexibility in the types of roles he can play in our ODI line-up. Our next opportunity in the ODI format will be in India next year which will allow us to experience similar conditions as for the World Cup in October.”

Australia have had mixed results in ODIs this year, narrowly losing in Sri Lanka and Pakistan before recovering from a shock loss to beat Zimbabwe and thrash New Zealand at home.

The greatest rivalry in cricket resumes at the Adelaide Oval, the scene of England’s humiliation by Bangladesh, early elimination from the 2015 World Cup and start of the white-ball revolution that has seen them scale unimaginable heights.

Seven years later, England are the dominant force in the shorter formats and justifiably being touted as one of the greatest ever exponents of the white-ball game.

“I think the perception of our team has changed a lot over the last few years,” said captain Jos Buttler.

“We’ve certainly not played it safe. We’ve always tried to push the boundaries, tried to get ahead of the rest of the world and be braver than anyone else. We know we’ll slip up along the way, but we trust that method and it’s served us well.”

With Buttler at the helm, there really is no ceiling as preparations begin for the defence of their 50-over World Cup title in India. The time for revolution is over, but this England side will continue to push the limits.

Watch the first ODI between Australia and England from 2.45 am on Thursday 17 November or catch up on our digital platforms.