England ODI squad against Sri Lanka announced – George Garton in!

England announced a 16-member ODI squad for the three match ODI series against Sri Lanka. The ODI series begins on June 29.

24-year-old left-arm pacer George Garton earned a maiden call up to the team. Pacer Olly Stone has been ruled out for the rest of the English summer after suffering another stress fracture to the lower back.

Garton has played 24 List A matches and picked 29 wickets at an average of 34.24 with an economy rate of 6.32. However, his raw pace has attracted the selectors as it is the main feature of his bowling.

Despite the absence of injured pacer Jofra Archer and all-rounder Ben Stokes, the England head coach Chris Silverwood announced a strong pace pack for the series on Saturday (June 19).

Speaking on Garton’s inclusion for the series, Silverwood said, “We have been monitoring the progress of George Garton for quite some time. He has been a significant part of Sussex’s bowling unit in white-ball cricket for an extended period. His ability to bowl quick with his point of difference being a left-armer certainly gives us options in this series, and he deserves his chance at this level.”

The squad is led by Eoin Morgan and has the usual suspects Joe Root, Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow and Sam Billings taking up the batting slots. Jos Buttler is the wicket keeping option alongside Jonny Bairstow and Sam Billings.

The squad also has all-round options in the form of Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone and Chris Woakes. Sam Curran and David Willey are the left-arm pace options apart from George Garton. Curran brothers and David Willey add depth to the batting order.

England ODI Squad:

Eoin Morgan (C), Joe Root , Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, George Garton, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood

England coach Chris Silverwood opined this series can be a good head start to their 2023 World Cup campaign.

“This ODI series is important as we continue to build momentum ahead of the 2023 World Cup. Despite some injuries, the squad I have selected is strong and gives us depth across all departments. We are looking forward to competing and putting on a show for the fans,” Silverwood said.

“Several players are not available for selection due to injury. Jofra Archer (right elbow), Saqib Mahmood (abdominal) and Reece Topley (side strain) are all missing, but continue to make excellent progress from their respective injuries,” he added.

Meanwhile England all-rounder Ben Stokes is set to return to action with Durham after recovering from a fractured finger he sustained in the Indian Premier League.

Silverwood hinted Ben Stokes could make a comeback in the T20I series against Pakistan once he is fit and ready.

The three ODIs will be played on June 29, July 1 and 4 in Durham, Oval and Bristol respectively.

World Champions England are ranked No.4 in the ICC ODI rankings while Sri Lanka are at the bottom at No.9.