Will Phil Salt keep his place? Could Sam Curran and Moeen Ali take on a greater role with the bat? Watch England's series-deciding third ODI against South Africa on Sunday (10.30am on air, 11am start)
Tuesday 26 July 2022 08:41, UK
How do England fill the sizeable gap left behind by Ben Stokes following his retirement from one-day international cricket?
Friday provided the smallest of glimpses into England's possible approach, with Phil Salt tasked with taking his spot, the Lancashire big-hitter promoted up to number three in the order too - though that might have been a result of it being a rain-shortened 29-over-a-side clash.
Will England continue in that way for Sunday's ODI decider - live on Sky Sports Cricket from 11am - at Headingley? A toe injury to Brydon Carse, weakening England's bowling reserves further suggests it's likely that the hosts again strengthen the batting.
But might they eventually go another way?
"Sam Curran, is there a bigger role for him?," pondered Sky Sports' Mark Butcher ahead of play at a rainy Emirates Old Trafford - with Curran then proceeding to impress with the bat, striking 35 off 18 balls to bail England out of trouble in their innings.
Curran is currently slated at No 8 in the England order, but might it be time for a promotion, to give him more responsibility ala Stokes as the true all-rounder to balance the team?
Former South Africa all-rounder Shaun Pollock certainly thinks so, saying as much after England's 118-run win on Friday, for which Curran was named Player of the Match.
"I don't know if there's going to come a time from an England perspective where you've actually got to make a call," he said. "Even someone like Ben Stokes, it will have taken someone to back him and say 'you're better than number eight'.
"Is there not a time where you say to him, 'we're going to back you at six'? Let's see if that can be a catalyst for him to launch."
Former England captain, Eoin Morgan agreed, adding: "I think he has so much to offer with the bat.
"He has a track record as well - at Surrey he has almost batted everywhere from number three to eight.
"He doesn't waste balls either. He is not going to get in the way of being aggressive or posting a big score.
"Legitimately, he becomes a logical option. He has a lot of talent."
Curran himself even said after the game, "Any time I go into bat, I like to try and bat with a batter's mindset.
"Coming back from the injury, I had a lot of time to reflect and it was an area of my game I wanted to be a little bit more consistent with."
Curran, though, isn't England's only soldier pushing for a promotion, with Butcher labelling Moeen Ali - normally slated to bat at seven, but pushed up to five on Friday - as a "ready-made replacement" for Stokes.
"Moeen Ali is underused by England traditionally in this format," Butcher said. "He is very much a senior player in this side now and he is wonderfully talented as a batter.
"Say to him, 'you've got more responsibility now, we need you to do more of the Ben Stokes thing, and less of the pretty cameos'.
"And he would be able to do that, I have no doubt about it."
Both Curran and Moeen have benefitted from precisely such added responsibility in the IPL, with both of them backed to bat higher up the order.
In his 23 IPL innings for a combination of the Punjab Kings and Chennai Super Kings, Curran has batted in the top six for 16 of those, even opening the batting on four occasions.
Moeen has had even more consistency from his time with Royal Challengers Bangalore and, more recently, the Super Kings, batting in the top three for more than half of his 42 innings.
Are they being wasted down the order for England?
With Morgan and Stokes both retiring in quick succession, the pair would provide some valuable left-handed options for England up the order, while at the same time allow England to add an extra bowler in their XI.
Chris Woakes would be a prime candidate at No 7, while David Willey could also benefit from a slight nudge up the order.
But therein lies the issue currently for England. Woakes is injured, as is Jofra Archer, Mark Wood and a number of other bowling options who could add a great deal to their attack.
It means that, at the moment, Salt - and Harry Brook, waiting in the wings - most likely stands to benefit most from Stokes' absence, with England opting to add greater batting depth in lieu of limited bowling options.
Carse's absence on Sunday, along with uncertainty over Matthew Potts' status after he left the field on debut in the sweltering series opener in Durham, means any promotion for Curran and Moeen might have to wait.
Watch the series-deciding third ODI between England and South Africa live on Sky Sports Cricket on Sunday. Coverage starts at 10.30am, with the first ball at 11am.
