CARDIFF, Wales (AP) — New Zealand won the toss and chose to bowl first against England on Friday in the first of four matches in their one-day international series, the rivals’ first meeting since their epic Cricket World Cup final at Lord’s in 2019.
Harry Brook, who has been controversially left out of England’s squad for the upcoming World Cup in India, gets a chance to stake a claim for a late call-up — and as an opener alongside Dawid Malan, typically England’s No. 3.
The new opening partnership is needed because Jason Roy had a back spasm hours before the game that ruled him out while Jonny Bairstow was rested after hurting his right shoulder in the fourth Twenty20 against New Zealand on Tuesday. That series ended 2-2.
Ben Stokes plays his first game since reversing his decision to retire from ODIs and will only bat, while pacer Gus Atkinson was handed an ODI debut.
Fast bowler Adam Milne missed out for New Zealand because of a tight hamstring, while Will Young was selected ahead of Finn Allen to open. Kane Williamson is unavailable as he recovers from a knee injury sustained in the Indian Premier League.
The series is serving as a warmup for the World Cup, which opens with England taking on New Zealand in Ahmedabad next month.
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Lineups:
England: Harry Brook, Dawid Malan, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (captain), Liam Livingstone, Chris Woakes, David Willey, Adil Rashid, Gus Atkinson, Reece Topley.
New Zealand: Will Young, Devon Conway, Henry Nicholls, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (captain), Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Kyle Jamieson, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, Lockie Ferguson.
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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
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