Ashes winners rested for ODIs

Alastair Cook will play no part in the one-day internationals against Ireland and Australia
28 August 2013

England have rested a host of senior players for their forthcoming one-day matches against Ireland and Australia, including captain Alastair Cook.

Cook joins fellow Ashes winners Stuart Broad, Ian Bell, James Anderson and Graeme Swann in missing the stand-alone one-day international in Dublin and the five-match NatWest Series against Australia that follows.

Eoin Morgan will captain the squad in the absence of Cook and Broad - for the second time against his native Ireland - and he leads a squad including five uncapped players.

Pace bowlers Chris Jordan and Jamie Overton received senior call-ups for the first time, joining Morgan's fellow Irishman Boyd Rankin in a revamped seam attack.

Batsman Michael Carberry, enjoying a fine white-ball season with Hampshire, also stands on the verge of a first ODI cap, as does highly rated Yorkshire batsman Gary Ballance.

Three other Test stars - Kevin Pietersen, Joe Root and Jonathan Trott - have been excused the trip to Ireland but will rejoin the group for the Australia series.

Ballance, Nottinghamshire batsman James Taylor and Hampshire spinner Danny Briggs will drop out after the Ireland match to make way.

Durham all-rounder Ben Stokes, who made his debut in Dublin two years ago but has made just four ODI appearances since, is in both squads, as is Luke Wright, whose last 50-over appearance came in March 2011.

National selector Geoff Miller said: "Following a very intense period of cricket this summer we have decided to rest a number of senior players which will allow them to recover from a heavy workload over the last three months and to prepare for the tour of Australia which begins in eight weeks.

"This creates an excellent opportunity for players who have impressed in county cricket and for England Lions recently to test themselves at international level as we continue to build a squad ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup, which is less than 18 months away.

"There are a number of very experienced one-day players in the squad alongside players who are new to international cricket and we are expecting a very tough challenge both from a strong Ireland side and then from Australia in what will no doubt be a very competitive NatWest series."

With Australia also making a raft of changes for the series - only seven of their 18-man squad played in the Ashes - both countries clearly have their eye on the return Ashes series this winter.

England begin that tour on October 31 - with a three-day match against Western Australia - meaning their Test players will have precious little time to recover from a busy summer schedule, which followed the back-to-back tours of India and New Zealand.

Cook, Anderson, Bell, Broad and Swann have been almost ever present throughout as England regained the Ashes, reached the final of the Champions Trophy and beat New Zealand 2-0 in their home Test series.

It will be the first time Cook has been rested from a squad since he took over the Test captaincy 12 months ago.

The absence of those key players, as well as in Australia's team, means fans will be left to watch second-string line-ups to finish the summer.

England ODI squad v Ireland (Sep 3): E Morgan (Middlesex, capt), G Ballance (Yorkshire), R Bopara (Essex), D Briggs (Hampshire), J Buttler (Somerset), M Carberry (Hampshire), S Finn (Middlesex), C Jordan (Sussex), J Overton (Somerset), B Rankin (Warwickshire), B Stokes (Durham), J Taylor (Nottinghamshire), J Tredwell (Kent), L Wright (Sussex).

England squad for NatWest ODI series v Australia (from Sep 6): E Morgan (Middlesex, capt), R Bopara (Essex), J Buttler (Somerset), M Carberry (Hampshire), S Finn (Middlesex), C Jordan (Sussex), J Overton (Somerset), K Pietersen (Surrey), B Rankin (Warwickshire), J Root (Yorkshire), B Stokes (Durham), J Tredwell (Kent), J Trott (Warwickshire), L Wright (Sussex).

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