T20 World Cup: England squad named, no Ben Stokes as Joe Root fails to make the cut

Kolkata: The onus will be on Eoin Morgan, England’s white ball captain, to make it a ‘double’ by adding the Twenty20 World Cup to their maiden triumph in 50-overs showpiece as a 15-member preliminary squad was named on Thursday.

Morgan, who alongwith most of his team members will have enough time to acclimatise themselves with their respective teams in the hot and humid conditions of the UAE during the second phase of IPL, will be missing on Ben Stokes - a key player for the side in their 50-over World Cup triumph two years ago.

Stokes continues to take a break from cricket to focus on his mental health, which deprives the star allrounder a chance to redeem himself in this showpiece after he let the final of the 2016 edition slip away from England in the last over when Carlos Brathwaite of the West Indies clobbered him for four sixes.

The selectors recalled fast bowler Tymal Mills for the first time since February 2017 following his impressive performances in the Vitality T20 Blast and The Hundred.

“Tymal Mills deserves his inclusion and has demonstrated over the past couple of years that he has all the skills... his exceptional pace is a standout... he will add variety to our bowling unit,” said England coach Chris Silverwood.

There was no place for Test skipper Joe Root, who earlier this year expressed a desire to make a comeback in the shortest format. Injured paceman Jofra Archer was also not included.

“I believe we have selected a squad that covers all bases and has the depth to be successful in what is expected to be a very competitive tournament featuring the best players in the world,” added Silverwood. England take on West Indies in their opener on October 23 in Dubai.

No surprises in Bangladesh squad

Bangladesh, an extremely competitive side in this format, announced their squad with not too many surprises and to be led by allrounder Mahmudullah.

The team will miss out on the experience of Tamim Iqbal, who opted out due to a lack of game time in the format while opener Saumya Sarkar was picked despite his poor form in their 4-1 series victory at home against Australia last month.

Nurul Hasan will continue as the wicketkeeper following Mushfiqur Rahim’s recent decision to withdraw from that role and play as a specialist batsman.

Senior pace bowler Rubel Hussain and leg-spinner Aminul Islam are the two reserve players for Bangladesh, who again will rely on veteran all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan to make an impact having recently won home series against Australia and New Zealand.

Bangladesh begin their early round campaign against Scotland on October 17 and need a top-two finish in a group that also includes Papua New Guinea and co-hosts Oman to make the tournament’s Super 12 stage.

England squad: Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonathan Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Tymal Mills, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood. Reserves: Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, James Vince.

Bangladesh squad: Mahmudullah (captain), Mohammed Naim, Soumya Sarkar, Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Afif Hossain, Nurul Hasan, Mahedi Hasan, Nasum Ahmed, Mustafizur Rahman, Shoriful Islam, Taskin Ahmed, Mohammad Saifuddin, Shamim Hossain.

- With inputs from Reuters