Alex Hales fast-tracked into England ODI team for West Indies tour

What’s the story?

English opener Alex Hales has been recalled to the side for the tour of the West Indies after almost fully recovering from a broken hand. The English Cricket Board confirmed Hales’ inclusion with the message: "Alex Hales arrives tomorrow evening local time. He will continue his rehab with us until the medical and coaching teams deem he is fit enough to join the squad officially."

In case you didn’t know…

Hales had fractured his right hand during the second ODI between India and England at Cuttack last month. The 28-year old, who made his ODI debut in 2014, injured his hand while attempting a catch of former Indian captain MS Dhoni in the outfield. Due to the injury, he could not take part in the last ODI at Kolkata, as well as the three T20Is.

The heart of the matter

Although he isn’t match-fit at the moment, Hales has been fast-tracked into the team to monitor his progress in the final phase of his rehabilitation, where the medical team will assess him and deem him match-fit whenever he recovers completely.

The right-handed batsman expressed his excitement at joining the squad for the tour by posting a message on his Twitter handle as soon as the news went public.

Antigua tomorrow. Can't wait to get back amongst it!

— Alex Hales (@AlexHales1) February 27, 2017

What’s next?

The series begins with the first of the three ODIs at the Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on March 3rd. To get the tour off to a sound start, the English team completed a comprehensive 117-run win in their warm-up game against the Vice-Chancellor’s XI.

The two teams, who have played a total of 88 ODIs (the last of which was in 2014), share honours with 42 wins each. England, however, currently have an upper hand over a weakened West Indian side, despite losing the ODI series to India 2-1.

Sportskeeda’s take

The explosive opener’s inclusion bodes well for the top order because has been one of the primary reasons why England has been a force to reckon with in the shorter formats, highlighted by his whirlwind 171 against Pakistan last year that took England to the highest ODI score ever. Scoring with a swift clip on both sides of the wicket, Hales will look to get on the field against West Indies as soon as possible, a team he hasn’t played against in ODIs yet.