England ODI squad: World's No 1 side show their strength with largely unchanged selection for Australia series

Coach Trevor Bayliss, captain Eoin Morgan and national selector Ed Smith have decided against experimentation in favour of honing and grooving the No 1 side in the world

England have chosen to stick with much of the side that has risen to number one in the world (Getty)

With the World Cup starting in exactly one year, England's decision to name a largely unchanged squad for the forthcoming series against Australia is a show of considerable strength by the world’s No1 ranked side: a signal that for all their tribulations in the five-day game, they have struck upon a formula that works for them.

The return of Liam Plunkett, who missed the bulk of the tour of New Zealand with a hamstring injury, is the only significant change. He replaces Somerset’s Craig Overton, who replaced Plunkett during England’s 3-2 series win.

The only other change is the omission of Kent captain Sam Billings as the squad is trimmed from 15 to 14. However, Billings will feature in the one-off game against Scotland in Edinburgh on 10 June, as Jos Buttler is rested ahead of the five-match Australia series that begins three days later.

Bayliss has stuck with what has made England the best ODI side in the world (Getty)

The bottom line is that a clear pecking order is in place, with coach Trevor Bayliss, captain Eoin Morgan and national selector Ed Smith deciding against experimentation in favour of honing and grooving the existing unit. Morgan is currently recovering from a chipped bone in his right ring finger, but is still expecting to play a full part in the series.

England’s settled side is a stark contrast to the Australians’ makeshift squad, which is missing all three of their Ashes-winning pace attack (Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc), its two banned batsmen (Steve Smith and David Warner), and their best all-rounder (Mitch Marsh) and whose captain Tim Paine is not an automatic pick for the side. They arrive in the country on Tuesday, and will begin as clear second-favourites.

New skipper Tim Paine has problems ahead of his side's tour to England (Getty)

England squad:

Eoin Morgan (Middlesex, captain), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Tom Curran (Surrey), Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire), Liam Plunkett (Yorkshire), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Jason Roy (Surrey), Ben Stokes (Durham), David Willey (Yorkshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham)

ODI Fixtures:

Scotland v England, Sunday June 10, Edinburgh

1st ODI, Wednesday June 13, The Kia Oval (D/N)

2nd ODI, Saturday June 16, Cardiff

3rd ODI, Tuesday June 19, Trent Bridge (D/N)

4th ODI, Thursday June 21, Chester-le-Street (D/N)

5th ODI, Sunday June 25, Emirates Old Trafford