"They said with Stokesy coming back I was probably going to miss out" - Harry Brook on omission from England's provisional World Cup squad

England middle-order batter Harry Brook was disappointed at not being picked in the side's provisional ICC ODI World Cup squad that was announced a few days back. The talented batter, however, understood the inclusion of Ben Stokes, and his not playing many List A games recently played a fair role in the selection.

Stokes, who last played ODIs for England in July 2022 before retiring from the format, reversed his decision to make himself available for the showpiece event. This led to Brook making way for the all-rounder in the England squad for the upcoming New Zealand series and the World Cup.

Speaking after the Hundred clash against the London Spirit, the 24-year-old admitted his disappointment but felt he could have done more to nail a place in the team.

"Obviously, it's disappointing but I can't do anything about it now. You've just got to move on. I'm trying not to think about it anymore. I've not had much conversation with Matthew [Mott] or Jos [Buttler]. They said with Stokesy coming back I was probably going to miss out this time. He is one of the best players to ever play cricket, so I can't really complain, can I?" Harry Brook said.

I feel like I'm playing well at the minute and feel I could potentially add value to the team. [But] there's always something more you could do," he added.

Although Brook has been in red-hot form in Test cricket, he hasn't taken the world by storm in the white-ball formats.

The 24-year-old has played in only three ODIs for England, all against South Africa earlier this year, scoring 86 runs at an average of 28.66, with a lone half-century.

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"Haven't had much opportunity to play one-day cricket" - Harry Brook

Brook has hardly played much List-A cricket in his career.

Harry Brook harped on the lack of opportunities to play one-day games for England or his County team over the last few years, possibly affecting his selection to the national squad.

The Yorkshire-born batter has not played a List-A game for his county side since 2019 due to the domestic season running parallel with the Hundred.

"I haven't had much opportunity to play one-day cricket, whether that be for Yorkshire or England. And although I've played a lot of T20 cricket, I don't know if I've done as well as I have in the past in the last six months, so that might have had an effect," Brook said.

Brook doesn't boast the most impressive List A numbers, averaging just a shade over 30 in 18 games.

Nevertheless, former England great Kevin Pietersen was stunned by the omission of Harry Brook and felt the youngster warranted a place ahead of Dawid Malan.

"I'm absolutely flabbergasted that he cannot make England's World Cup squad. Flabbergasted. Because he is pure quality. I just cannot believe it," Pietersen told Sky Sports.

England will take on New Zealand in four T20Is, followed by as many ODI games, starting August 30 before facing off against the same opponent in the World Cup Opener in Ahmedabad on October 5.