Jamie Overton will line up for England in Sunday’s third one-day international against South Africa at Southampton, replacing Saqib Mahmood in the only alteration to the side that slipped 2-0 behind at Lord’s. It means the hosts will again spread the fifth-bowler duties between Jacob Bethell, Will Jacks and, if needed, Joe Root – a combination that cost 1 for 112 from 10 overs on Thursday.
Ben Duckett keeps his place for this last ODI but will sit out the upcoming T20s, with Sam Curran parachuted into that squad. Duckett, Harry Brook and Jamie Smith have appeared in all 14 home internationals this summer – six Tests, five ODIs and three T20s – and the toll has started to show: just one score above 20 in his last ten innings, and a scratchy 14 from 33 balls at Lord’s.
“Brendon spoke to him over the last few days, trying to get a gauge of where he’s at,” Marcus Trescothick, the assistant coach, explained. “You look at every situation individually and in its own way, looking at the volume of cricket they’ve played and by chatting with them to see how they’re feeling… This is the best [decision] to maximise performances going forward as we head into a big winter.”
Trescothick expanded on the need for a brief reset. “We need certain players to be firing, and Ben is certainly one of those… We need the boys firing going into November, December, January. That’s an important time. It’s not to say things aren’t important coming up, but sometimes you just have to take your foot off the gas a bit and rejuvenate the mind. Then, you can get back on the horse and crack on.”
Tom Banton stays with the squad as batting cover but, barring illness or injury, will end the series unused. Somerset therefore travel to Edgbaston for Saturday night’s Blast quarter-final without him.
McCullum assumed control of both Test and limited-overs teams in January, yet England’s 50-over record continues to slide: eight defeats in 11 outings this year, a winless Champions Trophy campaign included, leave them eighth in the ICC rankings. Only the top eight qualify automatically for the 2027 World Cup, though South Africa and Zimbabwe secure two of those slots as co-hosts. In theory England must now avoid dropping below West Indies and Bangladesh, but the prospect of playing the global qualifier is hardly flattering for the 2019 champions.
“We’re in an interesting position where we need to climb those rankings,” Trescothick said.
Overton’s recall adds raw pace – he can nudge 90 mph – and a lower-order hit-out, though his ODI record is limited to three caps. Mahmood, economical at Lord’s but wicket-less in the series, rotates out as management continue to juggle workloads in a crowded calendar.
South Africa, for their part, have already sealed the series but remain intent on pad-locking the top-spot points. England, wounded pride aside, want to stop the rot and take something tangible into a winter that features an Ashes tour followed by a T20 World Cup. Overton, Duckett and the rest therefore have one more opportunity to remind everyone – not least themselves – that England’s white-ball reputation still lives somewhere beneath the recent bruising.
Likely England XI: Phil Salt (wk), Will Jacks, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Jacob Bethell, Sam Hain, Jamie Overton, Gus Atkinson, Rehan Ahmed.
Southampton, often a feather-bed for batters but offering bounce for the quicks with the new white ball, will stage the decider. A Sunday afternoon crowd, well versed in the summer’s ups and downs, will know exactly what’s at stake: nothing seismic in the bigger picture, perhaps, yet important enough for a side that could do with feeling good about 50-over cricket again.
