Joe Root, the seasoned English batter, has been added to England's squad for the upcoming ODI against Ireland, at Headingley on September 20. Root's inclusion comes at his own choice as he seeks to revive his 50-over form in preparation for the impending World Cup next month.
The initial 13-member team slated to face Ireland notably omitted any players from England's provisional 15-man World Cup squad. However, Harry Brook has replaced the injured Jason Roy in England's World Cup sqaud after an impressive run in recent past.
Root faced a slump in form during England's recent 3-1 series triumph over New Zealand with scores of 6, 0, and 4 in the first three games. In the fourth ODI at Lord's, he played a 29-run innings from 40 balls, indicative of his struggle to find rhythm in the format. Impressively, he has only had the opportunity to bat 16 times in ODIs since the 2019 World Cup.
Luke Wright, England's national selector, disclosed that Root requested to be involved in the forthcoming ODI against Ireland.
"He just wanted a bit more time. It's a great thing for someone to still have that desire to keep wanting to do more and more. It shows where he's at with his game and what makes him such a world-class player that, when he doesn't feel quite right, he still wants to tinker and do more. As much as we probably thought he needed a break as well, he just wanted another go," Wright was quoted by ESPNcricinfo.
Explaining the rationale behind resting Brook after a series against New Zealand, Wright emphasized the need to balance physical demands with mental well-being, especially considering Brook's relentless summer schedule.
"It would be silly of us to not give him a break. You always have to look at how much more batting does someone need versus what mental break do they need. I think in this case, we wanted to give him that break before the World Cup so he's going to rest for that Ireland series," he added.
As for Roy, who was recently omitted from the World Cup squad due to back spasms during the New Zealand series, has been given an option to be involved.
"We've given Jason the option of being involved and he still has the option," Wright said. "He wasn't expected to be in that Ireland squad and then to get the news that he was missing out on the World Cup came as a bit of a hammer blow, so we've left that with Jason…. We'll work on that one over the next few days."
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