England skipper Jos Buttler feels that it was his responsibility to inform experienced opener Jason Roy about his exclusion from the 15-man squad for the ODI World Cup in India. The defending champions eventually decided to include young all-rounder Harry Brook in the final squad in Roy’s place.
Jason Roy was an important part of the England team in Eoin Morgan’s era, as he played a pivotal role in their title-winning campaign on their home soil 2019 ODI World Cup. The 33-year-old also missed out on the England team in the 2022 T20 World Cup as the Jos Buttler-led side went with a young side to win the championship in Australia.
Speaking of the decision to drop Jason Roy from the final 15-men squad, Jos Buttler feels that it was a tough job as a captain to pass on the decision to the players and admitted that it was his responsibility to give the England opener clarity about his omission from squad especially with Roy being one of his good friend in the game.
“I don’t think any time is easy, It’s part of the job as captain that is not enjoyable, whether they’re great friends or not, it’s not a nice job to do.”
“I certainly feel like it’s my responsibility to give that news. He’s a really great mate of mine, so it was a really tough call to make,” Jos Buttler said
The English opener has continued to be a regular in the ODI line-up and has scored two tons from six innings against South Africa and Bangladesh in the format this year but his poor form in the recent times in International cricket has worked against his inclusion in the team.
Harry Brook Can Cover One To Six In The Batting Order – Jos Buttler
Jos Buttler said that Jason Roy will be one of the reserves in the team going into the mega event in India and revealed that Harry Brook’s versatility in the game has worked in their favour to make it into the squad for the World Cup. He also stated that it was advantageous for the team to have a large pool of players from which to select the best lineup for their title defence in India.
“Jason will be the top-order reserve, absolutely. Harry, we do feel gives us versatility – he can cover one to six in the batting order which is obviously something that’s advantageous in a squad.”
“But good players miss out, it’s the very brutal nature of the sport. There’s plenty of people outside the 15 who will have felt that they were in with a really good chance of a spot.”
“It’s a bad headache to have but a good problem as a selection committee when you have a deep pool of players to choose from,” Jos Buttler added.
Brook was impressive for England in his short cricketing career in both white ball and red ball cricket. The batsman is anticipated to play a significant role in England cricket’s future and might contribute significantly to the squad’s title defence in India.