With England naming a 14-man squad for their upcoming three-match ODI series against Ireland, Taha Hashim and Ben Gardner pick out the key stories.

The left-armers left out no longer

After some tough times, left-arm quicks Reece Topley and David Willey are back in the reckoning. For Topley, numerous stress fractures have hindered his progress since his last England appearance at the 2016 World T20; a three-year spell at Hampshire involved just 21 appearances for the club across all formats. Success came his way at Sussex last year as he took 17 T20 Blast wickets at 17.94, although it’s now Surrey he calls home. A first ODI appearance since Valentine’s Day four years ago would be one for the romantics.

Willey’s absence has not been nearly as long but few will forget the circumstances of his dumping from England’s white-ball set-up. Having been a regular on the ride to the 2019 World Cup, the emergence of a tidal force by the name of Jofra meant there was no space for the Yorkshire all-rounder in the squad that would go on to make history. He was subsequently left out of England’s next white-ball assignment, five T20Is against New Zealand, and admitted to ESPNcricinfo earlier this month that he thought the omission marked the end of his international career. He’ll be happily wrong today. TH

Joe Denly isn’t done yet

“Joe Denly, Test No.3” has been the main story for the last year, but it’s a white-ball contract the 34-year-old holds. Having been dropped after the first Test against West Indies at the Ageas Bowl, Denly is now back in Southampton, and an appearance in the series would make him the first man to play both Test and ODI cricket this summer. It may seem like a lifetime ago, but Denly does have some form to go on: he hit two half-centuries in the ODI series against South Africa in February. TH

England resist the lure of precocious young batting talents

59.78. That’s Sam Hain’s List A average, higher than anyone to have batted at least 50 times in List A cricket. Yep, even Virat’s below him. But the 25-year-old’s wait for an ODI cap will continue, having been overlooked despite his presence in England’s 24-man training group. He didn’t fare too well in the intra-squad warm-up matches, with 28 runs from three innings, and neither did Phil Salt, who returned 26 runs from his three knocks. But when Salt took on Ireland for the Lions on Sunday, the hard-hitting Sussex opener went ballistic. Fourteen fours and two sixes took up plenty of space in his unbeaten century, and yet England still couldn’t find room for the 23-year-old. Instead, they’ve plumped for the tried and tested, picking no uncapped players in the 14. An undeniably unsexy even if probably sensible move. TH

England’s strength in depth is obscene

Given that those in the mix to play against West Indies, Denly aside, weren’t considered, some of the names left out are staggering. In another era, Liam Livingstone might be a household name. He’s only a reserve for this squad. The injured Dawid Malan and the exiled Alex Hales are two others England won’t miss, because of the other options available. BG

Ireland won’t be taken lightly

In the past, a squad for a series against Ireland might have had a more experimental feel about it: think Zafar Ansari or Ben Foakes playing their only ODIs in the Dublin mizzle. Instead, this is pretty much the strongest squad England could have gone with, once you discount those unavailable. Whether it’s a sign of the growing respect in which Ireland are held, or a demonstration of how seriously England are takeing the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League, it’s an interesting development. BG