Aus vs Eng – England rest Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue for Australia T20Is

A year out from next year’s World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia, England have made clear that their focus is on 50-over cricket. They have named a full-strength squad for their three ODIs in Australia, with Archer (rested) and Jacob Bethell (knee) both added to the group that will leave for Pakistan on Thursday, while their T20 squad is much more experimental.

“The returns of Jacob Bethell and Jofra Archer for the ODI series means that we will be at close to full strength as we ramp up preparations for a World Cup in a year’s time,” Marcus North, England’s national selector, said. “The four quick bowlers will then leave after the three-game ODI series as we look to manage them ahead of the Test tour of South Africa.”

England will play a three-day warm-up match from December 9-11 against a CSA Invitational XI in Durban, before the first of three Tests begins on December 17 in Johannesburg. Their fast bowlers’ early arrival should allow them to acclimatise to conditions in South Africa and to work with Eric Simons, England’s new Test bowling coach, ahead of the series.

Rehan Ahmed is a notable omission from both squads after an underwhelming home summer, while the unfortunate Saqib Mahmood misses out with another injury. Mahmood has won only 40 England caps across formats since making his international debut in early 2020, and Cricinfo has learned that he will undergo knee surgery on Tuesday after another setback.

Brydon Carse has again been overlooked for both squads as the Cricket Regulator’s investigation into his conduct on a night out in Derby continues. Rob Key, England’s managing director, said on Monday that Carse needed to “get his house in order” and added: “Once all of this is dealt with, we’ll decide if he can play international cricket again.”

Brendon McCullum, England’s white-ball coach, said last month that he would work closely with Key and new Test coach Stephen Fleming to work out England’s priorities ahead of a busy winter. The squads announced on Tuesday confirm that both Test cricket and ODIs will take precedence over T20Is for the next 12 months, with the Ashes and a World Cup looming.

England will leave for Pakistan on Thursday ahead of their ODI tri-series with the hosts and Sri Lanka, and will travel straight on to Perth for a rare white-ball warm-up match. There are two changes from the tri-series squad to the one that will face Australia in three ODIs, with Archer and Bethell due to replace Coles and Mason Crane.

Their T20I squad is much changed from the group that beat Sri Lanka 3-0 last month. Phil Salt returns from a quad injury to replace the injured Buttler; Sam Curran is back from a groin injury; Rew effectively replaces Ben Duckett, who has been left out; and the fast-bowling line-up is entirely different, barring Jamie Overton.

Rew missed the final two months of the home summer with an ankle injury but is a highly-rated young player who captained England at this year’s Under-19s World Cup. He is the younger brother of James Rew, who struggled on Test debut this summer, and has also been awarded an ECB development contract ahead of him.

Jack, who turned 21 last month, is already an England Lions regular and has had a development contract since last October. His short-form record is thin – he has only played seven games in the T20 Blast and none in the Hundred – but he has impressed England’s management.

“Our T20 team has been in excellent form under captain Harry Brook and we are looking forward to the opportunity to test ourselves in Australian conditions against a very good team,” North said.

“We will have four uncapped players in an exciting T20 squad including Thomas Rew and Eddie Jack, both of whom toured Australia with the England Lions last year, and who earn their first England call-ups.”

England tour to Australia

ODI squad: Harry Brook (capt), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, Jordan Cox, Henry Crocombe, Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Josh Tongue

T20I squad: Harry Brook (capt), Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, James Coles, Jordan Cox, Henry Crocombe, Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Aneurin Donald, Eddie Jack, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Thomas Rew, Phil Salt, Luke Wood

Fixtures: November 7 – 50-over warm-up vs Western Australia XI (Waca, Perth), November 13 – 1st ODI (Optus, Perth), November 15 – 2nd ODI (Adelaide), November 18 – 3rd ODI (Hobart), November 21 – 1st T20I (Melbourne), November 24 – 2nd T20I (Gold Coast), November 27 – 3rd T20I (Brisbane), November 29 – 4th T20I (Sydney), December 2 – 5th T20I (Canberra).

Matt Roller is a senior correspondent at Cricinfo. @mroller98

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