Hales 'to skip England's tour of Bangladesh' ahead of World Cup as PSL pays more

31 January 2023 , 09:13

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Alex Hales made his England comeback last year and helped them win the T20 World Cup (Image: Philip Brown/Popperfoto/Popperfoto via Getty Images)

England opener Alex Hales is reportedly set to miss the upcoming tour of Bangladesh in order to play in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) instead.

Hales' three-year England exile came to an end last year as he played a crucial role in their T20 World Cup win, smashing 212 runs at an average of 42.40 after being called up as an injury replacement for Jonny Bairstow.

However, according to a report from the Telegraph, Hales will miss England's trip to Bangladesh in March to honour his contract with PSL side Islamabad United, where he will earn around £145,000 after being signed as a platinum pick in December's draft.

The report states that England are 'highly understanding of the situation and have not put pressure on Hales', with the opener still part of their plans in white-ball cricket. It claims that, although Hales has not played an ODI since 2019 and was not picked for the ongoing series against South Africa, they remain open to selecting him for the upcoming 50-over World Cup.

"To me white-ball cricket is white-ball cricket," England coach Matthew Mott said of Hales' ODI prospects following the T20 World Cup win. "He's shown he's not a slogger of the ball.

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"He's a proper cricketer and there's absolutely no reason why he couldn't get in that 50-over team. We've got some tough selections coming up, and we don't play a lot of one-day cricket, but I'm sure if he keeps in this rich vein of form he'll be hard to keep out."

Hales is reportedly set to miss England's upcoming white-ball tour of Bangladesh (PATRICK HAMILTON/AFP via Getty Images)

However, with Hales set to miss the Bangladesh tour, England only have seven more ODIs scheduled against New Zealand and Ireland before the tournament gets underway in October.

And with Mott already stating Bairstow is a "lock-in" at the top of the order when he returns from injury, Hales faces stiff competition for the other spot with Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Phil Salt and the uncapped Will Jacks also in contention.

Since the T20 World Cup, Hales has featured in both the Big Bash League and the inaugural ILT20, striking 245 runs at an average of 30.62 for the Sydney Thunder and smashing 434 at 86.80 for Desert Vipers.

Matthew Cooper