Hales Makes Return To England T20 WC Squad

LONDON: England batter Alex Hales will make a return to the national team after three years as a replacement for the injured Jonny Bairstow for the T20 World Cup, the ECB announced on Wednesday.

Hales has been one of the most sought-after openers in franchise cricket across the world during his time away from the national squad.The 33-year-old is the second-leading opener in T20s since 2020, scoring 3376 from 111 innings - only behind Pakistan's Mohammad Rizwan who has managed 3435 runs.

Hales, who has just gone past 10,000 runs in Twenty20 cricket, had lost the trust of former captain Eoin Morgan ahead of the 2019 ODI World Cup when he tested positive for recreational drugs.

However, the latter's retirement in April has finally opened up doors for the right-handed batter with wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler having taken over the responsibility of leading the limited-overs side. Agencies

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