England announce ODI squad for India series
After missing the ODI series and T20I against Australia with a hamstring injury, England all-rounder Ben Stokes has been named in the ODI squad for the three-match ODI series against England.
Stokes, who will return to action in the Vitality T20 Blast for Durham Jets against Yorkshire Vikings will also be available for selection for the final T20I against India on July 8, if he does no further damage. The all-rounder's last ODI was in March 2018 against New Zealand and has since had to battle with injuries.
Among the 14-member ODI squad to face India is captain Eoin Morgan and several regular suspects including Joe Root, who received support from Paul Farbrace after there were calls from some quarters for his omission from the T20I side.
However, there is no room for Sam Billings, who stepped in Stokes' absence for the ODI series against Australia. Also not making the cut was Sam Curran, who was also drafted into the ODI squad for the Australia series as an injury replacement.
Speaking about Root, Farbrace said: "Absolutely. You need your best batsman. I can't believe anybody else in our set-up would argue against that. He (Root) is world-class in all forms of the game. You do need nous, and you do need people playing in different ways.
England are currently the No.1 ranked ODI team in the world and consolidated their position after the 5-0 whitewash of Australia. They take on India, who are No.2 in the world and will hope to retain their spot, which will happen as long as they are not whitewashed 3-0. The three-match ODI series begins on July 12.
England ODI Squad: Eoin Morgan (C), Moeen Ali, Jonathan Bairstow, Jake Ball, Jos Buttler, Tom Curran, Alex Hales, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Mark Wood