England will resist wholesale changes and instead rely again on the majority of their beaten Ashes tourists when they name a squad to face New Zealand in two Tests.
James Vince and Mark Stoneman’s positions are likely to be the most contentious after maiden tours of Australia which saw them average well under 30, with two half-centuries each in their combined 18 innings in England’s top three.
The likelihood nonetheless is that, when the squad is named in Sydney on Wednesday, both will be given the opportunity to restate their cases before the home summer.
Vince especially has come under fire for failing to cash in when set, and perhaps contributing to his own downfall on several occasions during the 4-0 series defeat in Australia.
Assistant coach Paul Farbrace did not mince words when asked to assess the flashy number three’s future prospects.
During his frank analysis of England’s campaign on the penultimate evening of the series, Farbrace said: “There’s no doubt James Vince needs to score more runs if he’s going to play international cricket for England.
“Of course 25 isn’t an average that any top-order batsman wants.
“He’s shown some decent starts, he’s showing some glimpses, and we all think ‘crikey, this could be the innings’.
“But there comes a time when ‘this could be the innings’ has to stop – and he has to score hundreds.
“The blunt answer is he knows he has to score more runs if he’s going to have a future with England.”
It is hardly a ringing endorsement of Vince’s efforts so far – yet in calling for more productivity, the implication is that he may be granted a chance to do just that in what remains of the Test winter.
If there is to be a change from England’s Ashes squad it may well be that reserve batsman Gary Ballance is not asked to undertake the trip this time.
If so, the uncapped Liam Livingstone is at the head of the queue among Lions contenders – with fellow strokemakers Joe Clarke and Dan Lawrence close behind.
Several of England’s regulars have failed to deliver in Australia, with all-rounder Moeen Ali the highest-profile under-achiever.
But he too will stay in the Test squad after a short rest – along with wicketkeeper-batsman Jonny Bairstow – during the Twenty20 Tri-series which falls between one-day international assignments in Australia and New Zealand over the next two months.
Among the bowlers, Mark Wood is still not considered ready for a Test return despite being fit enough to figure in England’s white-ball plans, while Chris Woakes is expected to be over his latest side problem in plenty of time, and Toby Roland-Jones has an opportunity to demonstrate his recovery from a stress fracture of the back during next month’s Lions tour of the West Indies.
Ben Stokes will be named in the squad, as he has been throughout the winter, even though his availability remains unknown while his wait continues to hear whether he will be charged with causing actual bodily harm during a late-night fracas in Bristol last September.
Possible England Test squad (v New Zealand in March/April): JE Root (Captain), M Stoneman, AN Cook, JM Vince, DJ Malan, JM Bairstow (wkt), MM Ali, CR Woakes, C Overton, SCJ Broad, JM Anderson, MS Crane, TK Curran, BT Foakes (wkt), LS Livingstone, TS Roland-Jones, BA Stokes.
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