England captain Jos Buttler has been excluded from the three-match Twenty20 series against Australia and may miss the five one-day internationals that come after.
“Buttler, 33, hasn’t played since the T20 World Cup in June due to a calf injury.
In his absence, Phil Salt will lead England for the first time in the T20s, with Harry Brook potentially stepping in for the ODIs if needed.
The T20 series kicks off on Wednesday in Southampton, with the ODIs starting on 19 September.
Australia’s visit marks England’s first white-ball series since their semi-final loss in the T20 World Cup.
Head coach Matthew Mott has since departed, but Buttler remained as captain following a review by managing director Rob Key.
Marcus Trescothick will act as England’s interim white-ball coach for the Australia series and the West Indies tour in November.
It was also announced this week that Test coach Brendon McCullum will take over the limited-overs teams, but his new role doesn’t start until January.
Buttler got injured during training before The Hundred and missed the whole tournament, along with Lancashire’s loss to Sussex in the T20 Blast quarter-finals on Wednesday.”
“Salt stepped in for Buttler as Manchester Originals captain during The Hundred and will now lead a revamped T20 squad featuring six uncapped players, including Surrey all-rounder Jamie Overton, who has been called up as Buttler’s replacement.
Salt has appeared in 31 T20s and 19 ODIs, securing his spot at the top of England’s white-ball batting order.
At 28, Salt might have taken on the wicketkeeping duties had Buttler been fit, so he could now combine both keeping and captaincy. Jordan Cox is another option for the wicketkeeping role.
Brook will join the ODI squad after a brief rest following the end of England’s final Test against Sri Lanka, which starts on Friday.
The 25-year-old batter, who has been vice-captain to stand-in Test captain Ollie Pope this summer, is seen as a potential future leader for the senior side. Brook, a former England Under-19 captain, led Northern Superchargers in The Hundred.
Cox, who has been part of England’s Test squad, has been added to the ODI team as cover, alongside his spot in the T20 squad.”
