Champions Trophy 2017: England poised to bring in Jonny Bairstow as Eoin Morgan's men eye place in the final

With the prize of a first major 50-over title tantalisingly within their grasp, England look set to drop Jason Roy for tomorrow’s semi-final against Pakistan and bring in Bairstow

Eoin Morgan and Jonny Bairstow in action during an England training session (Getty)

Loyalty and consistency of selection have been a cornerstone of England’s remarkable renaissance in one-day cricket over the past two years.

But with the prize of a first major 50-over title tantalisingly within their grasp, England have decided to drop Jason Roy for tomorrow’s Champions Trophy semi-final against Pakistan in Cardiff and bring in Jonny Bairstow to open at international level for the first time.

Eoin Morgan’s side have been ruthless on their way to reaching the last four, winning all three group games and fully justifying their status as tournament favourites.

But Roy’s return of 51 runs in eight ODI innings this summer has forced them to rethink their options at the top of the order.

The Surrey opener has played a key role in England’s resurgence since the 2015 World Cup. However, goodwill can only last so long and he now seems certain to lose his place to Bairstow, whose recent form meant he was unlucky to miss out on a place in the team for this tournament in the first place.

Although captain Eoin Morgan stopped short of confirming the change in Cardiff today, the sight of Bairstow playing a full part in practice while Roy watched on forlornly told its own story.

Morgan had stated before the Champions Trophy that Roy would retain his place for the duration of the tournament whatever his form.


 Morgan said he wasn't afraid to leave people out 
 (AFP/Getty Images)

But it appears there is little room for sentiment when there’s a major trophy on the line.

“I mentioned after the last game we’re getting to the business end of the tournament and we need to produce results,” said Morgan.

“I back all my players. I see the best in them, and I believe in them a huge amount. Ultimately it’s about the team.

“Getting to this stage of the tournament, we need results, and if that means somebody misses out, it’s unfortunate, but for the team’s sake, we need to get results. We want to win this tournament.”

Barring a last-minute U-turn, it means Bairstow will take his place at the top of the order for the first time in a full international.

Bairstow is expected to take his place at the top order (Getty)

The Yorkshire batsman has had some experience opening in 50-over cricket, scoring a half-century for England in a tour match in the Caribbean back in February and making 174 for his county in a Royal London One-Day Cup match against Durham last month.

Bairstow has also scored three half-centuries in his past four ODIs and has the handy knack of scoring runs when called in as a replacement, most notably when making an unbeaten 83 to guide England to a series-clinching victory against New Zealand at Durham two summers ago.

“Jonny’s a fantastic batsman,” said Morgan. “I think his best attribute, certainly in white-ball cricket over the last year and a half, has been his relentless attitude to scoring runs regardless of the situation.

“That innings against New Zealand up at Durham two years ago sort of sums him up. He came straight into the squad, having played no part in the series, and produced a match-winning knock. So I think his all-around ability is as good as we have in this squad.

“I’d have no worries if he has to open the batting. If Jonny does get the opportunity, I’m sure he’ll take it with both hands.”

England’s opening issue was an area Mickey Arthur, the Pakistan coach, was keen to exploit.

Taking a leaf out of the Sir Alex Ferguson book of mindgames, the South African said: “I was particularly worried that Roy hadn’t fired yet because I think he’s very close to something quite good. So if he’s not playing, that wouldn’t be too bad.

“I know that Bairstow has opened at county level, but he’s never done it internationally, and I think that’s a different ball game.”

Pakistan may be the lowest-ranked team in the Champions Trophy given they are eighth in the world.


 England take on a confident Pakistan in the semi-finals 
 (Getty)

However, they are full of confidence after overcoming defeat to India in their opening match – a performance Arthur branded “shambolic” – with successive wins against South Africa and Sri Lanka.

They also beat England in Cardiff the last time the teams met in September of last year.

England entered that final match of the series already leading 4-0.

Asked whether it would have an impact on this semi-final, Morgan said: “I think the impact of that series was 4-1. I didn’t think we performed well that day. Pakistan outplayed us. Obviously, on their day, they can beat any team in the world and are very dangerous.”

The fact this match will be played on a used pitch may well act as a leveller.

But Arthur knows his team are likely to need their best performance of the tournament so far if they are to reach Sunday’s final at The Oval.

“England are playing unbelievably well,” he said. “They’re a really, really good one-day unit with no apparent weaknesses. So we need to put them under pressure like we did last year here in Cardiff. Hopefully we can put our best game together tomorrow, and then who knows?”

Probable teams

England: Alex Hales, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (captain), Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid, Liam Plunkett, Mark Wood, Jake Ball.

Pakistan: Azhar Ali, Fakhar Zaman, Babar Azam, Mohammad Hafeez, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed (wicketkeeper, captain), Imad Wasim, Fahim Ashraf, Mohammad Amir, Hasan Ali, Junaid Khan.