Tuesday 19 August 2014 08:11, UK
Uncapped opener Alex Hales has been named in the England squad for the upcoming one-day international series against India.
The Nottinghamshire batsman has been in superb form of late and looks set to get a chance to open alongside captain Alastair Cook.
Hales, 25, has represented England with distinction in 32 Twenty20 internationals and has impressed for his county in 50-over cricket this summer, before marking his international call-up with a match-winning County Championship century against Northants on Monday.
That followed a brilliant 141 from 96 balls against Middlesex last Thursday and an impressive century for England Lions against Sri Lanka A at Taunton.
Frontline seamer Stuart Broad will sit out the series and is due to consult with a specialist this week about his long-term knee injury.
It was suggested that James Anderson might also take a break after the 3-1 Test series success over India was completed on Sunday but he has been named in the party, as has Steven Finn, who is back in favour with the England selectors.
However, there is surprisingly no place for all-rounder and limited-overs regular Ravi Bopara, and seamer Tim Bresnan also misses out.
But Cook's regular opening partner Ian Bell is in the squad, as are seamer Harry Gurney and spin bowler James Tredwell.
The five-match series gets underway at Bristol next Monday - live on Sky Sports - and presents a fine opportunity for players to stake a claim for places in the squad for the World Cup, which takes place in Australia and New Zealand early next year.
National selector James Whitaker said: "With the ICC Cricket World Cup now less than six months away, our focus over the coming months switches to identifying our strongest possible squad for that competition.
"However, this is an important series in its own right, and we have selected 15 players who we believe will perform well against an Indian side with a strong one-day record.
"This series presents an opportunity for players to build on their international and domestic form and demonstrate that they have the ability to win games of cricket for England.
"With plenty of domestic limited-overs cricket still to be played this season and a series against Sri Lanka in November before finalising our World Cup squad, there are still opportunities for us to consider a number of players who have missed out on selection."
England squad: A Cook (captain), M Ali, J Anderson, G Ballance, I Bell, J Buttler (wkt), S Finn, H Gurney, A Hales, C Jordan, E Morgan, J Root, B Stokes, J Tredwell, C Woakes.
Watch England play India in the first ODI on Monday on Sky Sports 2, with coverage from 10am.
