England Have Questions to Answer as They Head for Australia

Alastair Cook’s demise as England's one-day captain in December after the tour of Sri Lanka seemed to fall perfectly in pantomime season.

After seemingly suffering under his spell, the villain of the piece was cast aside with a World Cup less than two months away. To borrow a panto phrase: He’s behind you, England.

The truth, however, is the move does not mean they will now live happily ever after.

Heading for Australia to take part in the Carlton Mid ODI Tri-Series against the hosts and India, they still have some serious questions over the composition of their team—and they have left themselves little time to discover the answers.

Cook’s departure means the focus has been shifted elsewhere; new captain Eoin Morgan, fresh off a barren year with the bat, is now the one in the spotlight.

Before departing for Australia on Tuesday, Peter Moores, per John Ashdown in The Guardian, made it clear places were still up for grabs. “I can write down three or four different teams and they all seem really strong, which is a really good place for us to be in," he said at London Heathrow Airport.

It is hard to be quite as enthusiastic as Moores, who admitted at the press conference that Morgan will have a say in selection matters.

So what areas are the concerns for the new captain-coach combination?

Opening up

With Cook gone, there is a hole to fill at the top of the batting order.

Moeen Ali, who was only promoted to open for the Sri Lanka series, seems a certain starter, particularly after he marked his first innings in the role by hitting 119 from just 87 deliveries in Colombo.

Alex Hales would be the popular, progressive choice to partner the Worcestershire all-rounder. However, he has so far yet to translate his efforts in Twenty20 cricket over to the 50-over game, averaging 18 in seven innings.

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While Hales has so far had a brief taste of opening, Ian Bell has fulfilled the role on 65 occasions. He averages over 40 when doing so, and with Cook gone the pressure would no longer be on him to hit boundaries.

He has, though, made only three centuries in 146 ODI innings, a ridiculously low number for someone with his level of talent. How many more chances do the selectors give him to succeed?

There is the wild card of giving Yorkshire's Gary Ballance—recalled to take the place of the axed Cook—a go at opening, but that seems more of a last resort than a first option.

Joe Root has opened the batting in Tests, but England will be loath to shunt him up from four in the order, a position where he made three hundreds in 2014.

Captain Morgan

Morgan was the obvious choice to take over as captain. He has shown with the bat that he can keep a clear head in pressure situations, as well as being willing to take the attack to opponents.

The problem is, though, that he has not done much of that recently. The left-hander averaged 25.45 in 22 ODI innings in 2014. Even the much-maligned Cook (27.53) did better than that.

Morgan's solitary half-century in his last 19 innings did come when he was standing in as skipper for the suspended Cook, in the fourth one-dayer against Sri Lanka in Colombo. It also came with him batting at six.

That was a spot lower than he has been used to, England’s management having opted to promote Ravi Bopara above him (that is the same Ravi Bopara they left out of their squad entirely for the home series against India, by the way).

The pair are likely to occupy the same positions in the triangular series. Now, as captain, Morgan might use his position of power to move back above the Essex all-rounder.

Wherever he bats, the Irishman needs to rediscover some sort of form. England got rid of one skipper who they felt they could no longer carry; they cannot afford the embarrassment of their new man continuing to struggle for runs.

Who starts, who finishes

The trip to Sri Lanka gave England a good, hard look at their bowling options. The form and performances during those seven matches made the World Cup selection relatively painless (well, except for the dumping of your long-time leader in the run-up to the tournament).

Steven Finn continued his re-integration back into international cricket following that forgettable tour to Australia last winter, a trip that got so bad for him he was sent home early.

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Chris Jordan and Chris Woakes both made contributions on pitches that did not offer a lot of help, the latter taking 6-47 in Pallekele to help England claim one of two victories they managed over the Sri Lankans.

However, neither James Anderson nor Stuart Broad were available for that tour due to injury.

Both are now fit again and will expect to be slotted back into the team, seemingly leaving one seam-bowling berth up for grabs.

The key to who gets the nod could be the role England will require them to perform. Anderson is not best used at the death, while Finn was, for some reason, not really tried during the closing overs of the trip to Sri Lanka. Someone, apart from the always-willing Broad, will need to stand up and be counted.

Both Jordan and Woakes offer something with the bat, too. That is critical, as England do not want to be left with a long tail.

Positive spin

England could actually opt to pick four seam bowlers, though to do so would mean leaving out James Tredwell (they will not risk pushing Jos Buttler to six and having someone like Woakes at seven).

The Kent off-spinner has been a reliable performer in ODI action; he has 59 wickets in 44 matches at an average under 28. His economy rate is also steady, as he goes at 4.77 runs an over.

However, Moeen has gone from potential part-time option to England’s first-choice Test spinner over the past year. Root is definitely still a part-timer, though a handy one at that.

That pairing could be seen as enough to fill the fifth-bowling slot, with Bopara's medium pace as back-up.

Pitches in Australia and New Zealand are unlikely to favour the slow bowlers too often, so Tredwell will be desperate to impress on the upcoming tour and prove he warrants a place in England’s best XI.

Eranga Jayawardena/Associated Press

Whether four games (potentially five, if England spring a surprise and reach the final in Perth) against strong opposition will be enough to fathom things out remains to be seen.

The idea of playing in the tri-series was to fine-tune ahead of a major tournament, not offer a late chance to discover solutions.

Like the university student who waits and waits to start revising before their exams, England have left it to the last minute. They now have to cram everything in quickly or else be left hoping for the best when the World Cup comes around.

The clock is ticking to Valentine’s Day, when Morgan and whoever else makes up the rest of the XI will face co-hosts Australia on the opening day in Melbourne.

It is tough to love England’s chances right now, but things can change quickly. Just ask Alastair Cook.