According to Cricinfo, England fast bowler Josh Tongue will not play in the forthcoming three-match ODI series against Australia because of a toe injury. As he gets ready for the team’s next Test tour of South Africa, Tongue was left out of England’s plans for the five-match T20I series. He will return to the UK for more evaluation of his injuries.
Tongue had skipped the T20I matches as a precaution and was only chosen for the ODI portion of the trip. The management feels confident that the current group has enough depth to cover his absence, since England stated on the same day that no replacement would be invited into the squad. Both Stephen Fleming, the red-ball head coach, and Brendon McCullum, the white-ball head coach, are travelling with the touring group.
Tongue, who has been a consistent component of England’s Test team for the past 12 months, made his ODI and T20I debuts earlier this year. Alongside Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, and Sonny Baker, he has also been a member of England’s growing fast-bowling squad across formats. England won a 50-over warm-up match in Perth on Saturday to start their tour of Australia. Next Friday is the start of the three-match ODI series, which will be followed by five Twenty20 Internationals.
In three games against a strong Australian team, England’s fast bowling unit will have to shoulder Tongue’s workload without him. With Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Jamie Overton, and Henry Crocombe as seam alternatives, McCullum has a respectable variety of speed options at his disposal.
The management’s faith in the depth of the current squad is demonstrated by England’s choice not to call up a replacement. Once the starting lineup is announced for the first game of the three-match series, which starts in Perth on November 13, the attack’s makeup will be attentively monitored.
England are due to play a warm-up match in Durban from December 9 to 11, ahead of the first Test, which will begin in Johannesburg on December 17. As England gets ready for their limited-overs assignments in Australia and the next Test series in South Africa, Tongue will now have additional evaluation in the UK due to the injury.
