Jason Roy told his England career is "done" after brutal World Cup snub
Steve Harmison believes Jason Roy's international career is over after he was axed from England's World Cup squad ahead of the tournament.
The opener played a key role in England's 2019 triumph, smashing 443 runs at an average of 63.28, but he has been dropped for this year's World Cup after initially being named in the provisional squad. Back spasms prevented Roy from playing in any of England's pre-tournament ODIs against New Zealand last month and Harmison believes his absence is what led to his omission.
Dawid Malan scored two half-centuries and a hundred with Roy on the sidelines, cementing his spot as Jonny Bairstow's opening partner at the World Cup, while Harry Brook was added to the squad in Roy's place. And Harmison does not see the 33-year-old ever playing for England again, instead expecting him to "cash in" on the T20 franchise circuit for the rest of his career.
"I think Jason's done," Harmison said, speaking exclusively to Mirror Sport on behalf of OnlineCricketBetting. "I think Jason's been a brilliant servant to English cricket. The transition through 2015 and into 2019 and beyond, Jason has not only been an integral part of that he's been one of the main reasons why England have been successful.
"Whenever Jason gets runs at the top of the order England win because he gets them so quickly, he puts the opposition on the back foot and gives England so much momentum. Unfortunately for Jason, his body left him out.
Ballance set to make Test return for Zimbabwe after Yorkshire racism scandal
"I think somebody had to be left out (for Harry Brook) and unfortunately it was Jason. Before that it would have been Dawid Malan, but if you get injured and give somebody a chance to take your place… I think Malan did that and deserves to be in.
Steve Harmison believes Jason Roy will never play for England again after he was left out of their World Cup squad (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)"Unfortunately, Jason's the one that that misses out. It's unfortunate, but I don't expect Jason to come back. I think his life now is on the road in the franchise world and he deserves to cash in as much as he can because he's had his time in international cricket and he's been a brilliant servant to English cricket."
England have confirmed that Roy will be one of their reserve players, but he has not travelled to India with the rest of the squad like fellow reserve Jofra Archer. "Jason will be the top-order reserve, absolutely," England white-ball captain Jos Buttler said of the decision.
"Harry, we do feel gives us versatility: he can cover Nos. 1 to 6 in the batting order, which is obviously something that's advantageous in a squad. But good players miss out, it's the very brutal nature of sport. It's a bad headache to have but a good problem as a selection committee when you have a deep pool of players to choose from."
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
