England’s Hales set to skip Bangladesh tour
Alex Hales
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England's star opener Alex Hales plans to participate in the Pakistan Super League (PSL) as he opted out of the upcoming tour of Bangladesh, according to reports.
After being called up as a Jonny Bairstow injury replacement, Hales' three-year exile from England came to an end last year when he played a crucial part in their T20 World Cup victory, scoring 212 runs at an average of 42.40.
Hales, however, will miss England's trip to Bangladesh in March to uphold his contract with PSL team Islamabad United, where he will earn about £145,000 after being signed as a platinum pick in the draft. This is according to a report from the Telegraph.
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.
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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 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."
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.
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.
