Alex Hales unlikely to compete in the ICC World Cup in India in 2023
World Cup winner Alex Hales says he’s focused on franchise cricket and T20 internationals and isn’t concerned about competing in the ICC World Cup in 2023.
England power-hitter Alex Hales has stated that he is not considering playing in next year’s 50-overs World Cup in India and is instead focusing on T20Is for England and franchise cricket across the world. Hales was instrumental in the Three Lions’ recent T20 World Cup victory in Australia.
At the same time, the dynamic opener stated that his choice to retire from Test cricket has greatly aided his game in the shorter format. The senior batsman also stated that he is looking forward to mastering the skill of playing spin on the tricky subcontinent surfaces.
Alex Hales plans to focus on limited over cricket
“I don’t know but I think going forward I would concentrate on playing T20Is for England and franchise cricket. I haven’t put much thought into ODIs.” Alex Hales mentioned this during a Zoom conversation organized by Team Abu Dhabi ahead of the T10 League.
“On the subcontinent, pitches more often not tend to have a bias towards spin and you have to make sure you adapt your methods. And I think that’s one of the key things as a franchise cricketer,” he added.
“As you’re playing tournaments in different countries and conditions all year round, so you have to keep topping up on certain areas of your game all the time, otherwise you soon get found out,” he further added.
Hales was never considered for England’s T20 World Cup 2022 squad, and it wasn’t until Jonny Bairstow was ruled out due to a broken leg sustained in a tragic golf injury that the power-hitter was given a chance to play. The 33-year-old was kicked out of England’s squad for more than three years after failing a drug test before of the 2019 World Cup.
His top innings came against India in the semi-finals, when he scored an unbroken 86 runs off 47 deliveries at a strike rate of 183. With an unbeaten opening stand of 170 runs, he and skipper Jos Buttler knocked India out of the competition. Hales ended with 212 runs from six matches, averaging 42.40.
