Follow UsHarry Brook received a rude shock when his name was omitted from England's World Cup probable squad. The reason for that is believed to be Ben Stokes' decision to reverse his One-Day International (ODI) retirement and, as a result, will feature in the tournament as a specialist batter.
However, England captain Jos Buttler believes there's still enough time for the 24-year-old to stake claim for a place in the side in the mega event.
"There's still a long time before everyone is meant to get on the plane, so we'll wait and see what happens," Buttler said.
Brook responded to his axe by smashing a 41-ball hundred for the Northern Superchargers in The Hundred and has the most runs in the tournament (238) after Buttler (298).
"We all know Harry's a fantastic player, and we saw what he can do the other night," Buttler added.
"It's not like it's a surprise: we know what a brilliant player he is, he's just the unfortunate one to not be in that squad at the moment."
Brook had previously stated that he had made peace with his exclusion. "Obviously, it's disappointing but I can't do anything about it now," Brook said.
"You've just gotta move on. I'm trying not to think about it anymore."
Buttler, however, admitted that Stokes' return changes the side's dynamics a little bit.
"Of course, Ben Stokes coming back and being available just as a batter sort of changes the dynamic a little bit. Ben's a fantastic player to be able to welcome slightly a really tough selection," Buttler said.
Buttler also admitted that the team is blessed to have so much depth, making selection a good headache.
"We're blessed with a lot of strength in depth and talent. [There are] excellent players not in that provisional squad at the moment. It's been the nature of England squads in the white-ball teams over the last few years really, which is a great sign for us. They're good problems to have," Buttler said.
England will play eight white-ball games agianst South Africa, consisting of four T20Is and as many ODIs, starting August 30. They will also play three ODIs against Ireland before heading to India where they will play a couple of warm-up matches ahead of the World Cup.
The defending champions will then begin their World Cup campaign against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad on October 5.