Cut or keep: Who should England look to move on after their T20 World Cup exit?

For the first time in five years, England are not world champions, in either white-ball format. With much of the great generation who took them to the highest standing in international white-ball cricket already passed, it's time to work out what to do with the rest and how to rebuild.

The cuts

While some new faces have been successfully integrated, it's time for a clean break from those ghosts of that era still gripping onto a place in the squad. The two most prominent of these in England's loss to India were Jonny Bairstow and Moeen Ali. Bairstow's form was in question from the beginning of the tournament and, while a decent knock against the West Indies was enough to relieve some pressure, a wild hack against Axar Patel saw him bowled for a three-ball duck and was the hammer blow in England's defeat. It's not just Bairstow's lack of runs in the tournament, it's the manner in which he didn't score them. At his best, Bairstow should walk into any T20 side in the world but as he is, with no guarantee of returning to that and time ticking on how long he's got left, England have plenty of other options at the top of the order to move on with.

As for Moeen, at 37 it's highly doubtful he's looking towards the next 50-over World Cup, and he'll be pushing 39 by the next 20-over edition. His impact was limited in this tournament and his position with the bat is as difficult to nail down as ever. With other off-spinning all-rounders waiting in the wings, his time is up.

There's also Chris Jordan, who wasn't a given to be in the tournament this time around two months ago, but has ended up as England's joint-highest wicket-taker. It should be remembered that four of his 10 came in five balls at the death against USA, and he was expensive throughout the tournament. With the T20 World Cup set to be in Sri Lanka next time out where his effectiveness could be limited, and as another pushing into his late thirties, he's another England should look on from.

Mark Wood also had a surprisingly difficult tournament, and didn't feature in England's final two games. In his mid-30s and notoriously fragile, it's could be the right time to narrow down his formats. England also have Gus Atkinson waiting in the wings for an extended chance.

The other two bastions of England's 2015-19 era, Adil Rashid and Jos Buttler, are different. Rashid is England's greatest-ever white-ball leg spinner and is still ranked No.1 T20I bowler in the world. For as long as he wants to carry on, there will always be a place for him. As for Buttler, who is still only 33, the only thing uncertain for him will be whether he goes into the next tournament still wearing the captain's armband, or back in the ranks. Six months into a four-year cycle to the next 50-over World Cup, if England are going to change their captain-coach combination, now's the time.

The Keeps

Looking ahead to the players England could build their next cycle around, Harry Brook is their obvious lynchpin in the batting order. The pick of England's batters by far in this tournament and their next up and coming all-format giant, making sure he's batting further up the order is a priority. Phil Salt has also extinguished questions that were hanging over his head in the format a year ago, and will make up one half of the opening partnership. If England choose to put Buttler back down the order to solidify their middle, Will Jacks could fill the other opening slot. While he had a challenging tournament this time around, dropped after only three matches, his record in franchise cricket shows what he could become if that potential is unleashed.

There are also pillars on which to build a pace attack around. As long as both Jofra Archer and Reece Topley can keep fragile fitness at bay, they're there for the long haul. Topley has arguable been England's best white-ball pacer over the last two years, despite injury keeping him out for critical periods. Archer has sustained his fitness through the Pakistan series and the entirety of this tournament. Whether he can do that alongside a slated return to red-ball cricket next year will be decisive for England's fortunes across formats.

England have crashed out of the T20 World Cup after a comprehensive 68-run semi-final defeat to India 😬

They finish the tournament with just one win in four games against Full Member nations.

How would you rate their campaign? 🤔#T20WorldCup #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/UZrqDLMfi2

— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) June 27, 2024

The question marks

Eighteen months on from being T20 World Cup player of the tournament, Sam Curran is at a cross-roads. He wasn't in the starting XI for England's opening game of the tournament, and struggled for effectiveness when he came in later. Everything came into place at the right time in Australia. Big boundaries and more movement in the air played into how good Curran was during that tournament. Take that away and he's not the same bowler. England have Topley to provide a left-arm angle, and plenty of other all-rounders to balance out the XI. In Curran's favour is that he's still in his mid-20s and will likely be around the conversation for a long time to come. But some time on the sidelines could allow him to rediscover his best.

Liam Livingstone is another question to answer. There were signs last year that he was beginning to find some consistency over volatility, which coincided with being moved back up the order. Perhaps by moving aside some of the top order there will be room to try him again in a higher position. He provided utility with the ball during this tournament as well. But the question will be how long England can keep waiting for that potential to properly arrive.

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