The fact that England got mauled in Australia has Ben Stokes’ absence as one of the biggest reasons. The dashing all-rounder was left out of the Ashes squad due to an ongoing investigation going on against him.

The left-handed batsman got into a fist fight against some people outside a bar in Bristol. According to some witnesses, he was actually beating up some homophobic bullies who were trying to torment the witnesses, who are homosexuals.

As a result, a case was filed against the all-rounder and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) are still investigating the matter and have not come to a final decision regarding the incident.

This is why he wasn’t taken to Australia and now that the CPS are yet to announce their decision regarding the case, England selectors have decided to not call the all-rounder to Australia for the ODI series, prolonging his exile from the team.

On the other hand, Alex Hales have been cleared of any wrongdoings outside the Bristol Mbargo Bar and, as a result, has been called up for the ODI series. While the England selectors were asked to pick their best squad, not having Stokes in it is quite unfortunate.

The all-rounder, who is perhaps England’s best player, returned to competitive cricket with Canterbury last month. Many expected him to make a shock return, but now it seems like a dream that won’t come true for a while.

The final squad for the ODIs will be announced officially tomorrow, with Dawid Malan expected to take the place of Ben Stokes. Malan, who scored a century at Perth, has had a good outing in the Tests and deserves a place in the ODI team.

However, he doesn’t bring in the explosiveness of Stokes and also doesn’t have the bowling aspect that the all-rounder does.