Sure, the Ashes are the big draw. But England have already basically lost those. This is a series they actually stand a chance in, with a T20 World Cup just around the corner and plenty to prove.

No Parky, no party

Let’s get this one out of the way first up. Matt Parkinson, leg-spin wizard who bowled roughly a Ball of the Century a month during the English summer, still can’t find a place in any of the squads England pick, even when half of the usual first-choice players are otherwise engaged.

In England’s defence, their main white-ball spinners, Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid, don’t play Test cricket, meaning their is less need to rest them. And perhaps there is more to the omission than meets the eye. But it is hard to avoid the conclusion that those in the seats of power have concluded that he simply isn’t good enough, and no amount of domestic bamboozlement can shift them. Or maybe he’s being smuggled into Australia ready to be unleashed for the fifth Test. Let’s hope it’s that.

It’s second-string, not experimental

Even with plenty of players unavailable, the squad still has a familiar feel to it. There are two uncapped players, David Payne and George Garton, but the former is a 30-year-old county circuit dweller, and the latter has been in numerous squads for the past four years. There are some young talents to get the pulses racing – the likes of Phil Salt and Saqib Mahmood in particular – but could the chance have been taken to look at some of English cricket’s young starlets? Might England benefit more from giving Harry Brook a go than from James Vince and Sam Billings adding another few caps to the tally?

Balancing giving the reserves gametime with a T20 World Cup round the corner and planning for the future when there’s a global tournament basically every year from now until forever is no easy task, but the sense remains that England and Eoin Morgan have consistently leant a little too far towards the former aim.

Tom Banton comes back in from the cold

Just over a year ago, Tom Banton was English cricket’s white-ball golden boy. He’d torn up the Blast alongside Babar Azam, and torn up Babar Azam’s Pakistan. He’d grafted ODI fifties to show he could do the hard yards. He looked set as England’s next batter in, the main to lead the next generation.

Then the pandemic and the bubbles took their toll, and a tough 2020/21 winter rolled into a tricky 2021 summer. There were bright spots, notably a 47-ball televised Blast hundred, but it seemed as if he had slipped down the queue, and he’s hardly smashed the franchise stuff this winter either. This is a selection to show how highly England still rate him.

David Payne fairytale leads England’s left-arm revolution

The David Payne story is a heartwarming one, and a welcome boon to those who fear England are hesitant to look beyond the Test-match counties. He’s turned 30 but even when summoned in an emergency as Covid-stricken England looked to fulfill their Pakistan ODI obligations, he exuded a confidence and a sense of purpose. The impression he gave was that this was something he’d worked towards for years, rather than a chance call-up never to be repeated. His skillset is one to turn the eye, brisk if not quite express, but coming from a left-arm angle possessed by few.

Or so you’d think. England’s squad boasts four southpaw quicks, meaning Payne will have his work cut out to earn a gig. Unless England’s response to being very right-arm fast-medium in the Ashes is to become very left-arm fast-medium in T20, in which case the more the merrier.

Top-order spots up for grabs with Ashes stars absent

Even with the split squads, much of England’s team picks itself. Eoin Morgan, Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Tymal Mills and Jason Roy are all likely to play, with space for another seamer, or possibly two. That still leaves two spots in the top three open, with Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow all absent. Will Moeen Ali finally get a run at No.3? Will Phil Salt and J-Roy combine to make the most intent-filled opeining pair England have seen? Will James Vince finally come good? Whoever England go with, it promises to be fascinating.

England squad: Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Liam Dawson, George Garton, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Tymal Mills, David Payne, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Phil Salt, Reece Topley, James Vince.