England coach Matthew Mott has disclosed that he will provide every opportunity for injured stars Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer to rehabilitate in time to compete in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup the following year.
Both players are presently sidelined and undergoing recovery from their individual injury complaints. Stokes, who recently completed knee surgery after the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, and Archer, who is still grappling with a persistent shoulder issue, are the ones who are on the sidelines.
However, Mott recognizes the pair’s critical importance to his team’s formation and is content to leave two positions available for them as he selects England’s final 15-man selection for June of next year’s T20 World Cup in the USA and the Caribbean.
“I think that’s a given,” Mott said of whether the duo would be in the mix for World Cup selection.
“Ben, aside from his incredible match-winning ability in every department, gives us that ability to have a seam bowler in your top six that gives you so many options with your team balance…It makes selection a hell of a lot easier. So that’s a given.
“In terms of Jofra, you’ve just got absolute box-office pace, change of pace, bowl any over in the innings. Bowl your Super Over, bowl your last over when they need to. Him on the park is massive, everyone would agree with that.”
Although achieving a T20 World Cup defense is a major objective for England in 2024, the country’s current preoccupation is with securing a positive 3-2 series result in the fifth and final game of their ongoing Twenty20 International series against the West Indies.
Tuesday in Trinidad, Phil Salt scored his second consecutive century to balance the series at 2-2 for Mott’s squad. Salt, an in-form right-hander, is presently putting together a strong case to open the batting for England alongside captain Jos Buttler at the Twenty20 World Cup next year.
“It’s looking pretty good, isn’t it?” Mott remarked when asked about the Salt-Buttler pairing at the top of England’s batting order.
“We’ve got a lot of time between now and then. Obviously, Salty has put an undeniable case there and Jos is one of the greatest of all time. So how we get that top six or seven going will be an interesting thing.”
Further, Mott believes he is getting closer to determining the composition of England’s squad for the ninth edition of the Twenty20 World Cup, which begins in less than six months.
“We always said with West Indies series we’ll go pretty close to the side we’re looking for; otherwise, why would they be here?” Mott said.
“We don’t get many opportunities to play together before the World Cup. So, this is a very strong team we’ve bought out here.”
