England's first white ball assignment under Brendon McCullum ended in a 4-1 defeat to India in a T20I series, drawing questions over their ability to keep pace with the best sides in the world.
Despite a refreshed squad with new and returning faces, England repeatedly collapsed in India, culminating in being bowled out for 97 in Mumbai. While India have been able to replace their outgoing old guard with young players with a track-record of IPL success, England's technical flaws were exposed by Varun Chakravarthy and the rest of India's spinners, who spun through their lineup in every game.
While attention now turns to the ODI format ahead of the Champions Trophy, a looming World Cup hosted in India in 2026 won't be far from the back of McCullum's mind. Here five players England could turn to before that tournament to bolster their T20I side.
Joe Root
Clamours for Root to return to the set-up followed England's repeated collapses to spin throughout the series. Alongside the series he was showcasing his T20 talents in the SA20, scoring 279 runs at an average of 55.80 in the league. A return to the ODI set-up means he's firmly back in England's white-ball thinking and, as arguably England's best player of spin, could bolster their batting for a T20 World Cup in India. The last time the competition was held in India in 2016, Root was England's top run-scorer, amassing a total of 249 runs across six matches.
Root hasn't played a T20I since 2019, and managing his workload to prolong his career will also be a factor in whether England include him in their T20I plans. They have their 2025-27 World Test Championship campaign to think about, and need to look ahead to an Ashes series down under later this year.
Joe Root's last T20 international came over five years ago.
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) January 31, 2025
According to Mark Butcher, a recall for the star batter could help solve England's ongoing troubles against spin bowling.
READ: https://t.co/8BXyx1rPyI pic.twitter.com/oQvaL3Ghgw
Tom Banton
The Somerset man made his T20I debut back in 2019, but has since drifted away from the England set up following a difficult first stint in the side. He's been plying his trade in franchise leagues around the world, currently in the ILT20 for MI Emirates. He's scored two centuries and is currently the leading run-scorer in the competition, with 464 runs at a brutal strike-rate of 154.66, following on from his fabulous cross-format form across 2024. A recall for Banton may not be too far off the cards if his run-scoring continues at the same levels.
Sam Hain
Having already played 160 T20 matches in his career, Hain has maintained an average of 38.77 in the format, but has yet to be called-up to a full-strength England squad. Hain’s consistency at home has been remarkable and has positioned in the top 10 of run scorers in the T20 Blast for the past two years - notably scoring 569 runs in 13 innings during last year's tournament. Before being named in the ODI squad for a series against Ireland in 2023, he stated he had ‘made peace’ he may not be given the opportunity to represent England. However, should England look to replace one of their openers, he's well placed to earn a spot.
Liam Dawson
Dawson's name has not been far from England squads across formats over the last two years. The spinning all-rounder's cross format success had him in the running for recalls for both England's tours of India and Pakistan last year, and with the retirement of Moeen Ali a space has opened up for a role Dawson can fill. As well as his starring role for Hampshire over the summer, he played a key role for Paarl Royals over this winter and is an in-demand player on the franchise roster. Once again focusing on the 2026 World Cup, Dawson could be a key player England look to include for the first time in the format since 2022.
Ben Stokes
In true Stokes fashion, his last T20I game for England was in the 2022 World Cup Final, in which his match winning 52* - his only half century in T20 international cricket - handed his team their second 20-over World Cup. Since then he has struggled with his fitness and opted to rule himself out of the last T20 World Cup to focus on his recovery and regain his position as an all rounder. England were short on genuine all-rounders in India, a notable difference from their 2022 title-winning squad, which featured both Stokes and Moeen. Stokes hasn't officially retired from T20I cricket, and with the prospect of more work under McCullum now a draw for him he could make another specialised World Cup return.
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