Hales didn't imagine he'd get another chance like this. Hales felt his international playing days were finished after being overlooked for England selection for three and a half years. But things change
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Hales didn’t imagine he’d get another chance like this. Hales felt his international playing days were finished after being overlooked for England selection for three and a half years. But things change. Hales is back at the top of England’s order thanks to a combination of water under the bridge, a new captain, and Jonny Bairstow’s odd injury on the golf course. And it’s as if he’s never been away.
Hales has scored 429 runs in 14 matches since his return to the England squad in September, with a higher average and strike rate than his overall career statistics. Hales has now appeared in 75 T20Is for England, scoring 2000 runs in the format. His career T20I average is 31.40, and his strike rate is a good 138.47. He ranks among the top five England T20I players in terms of average and strikes rate.
Read more: England: The undisputed champions of white-ball cricket
Hales was dropped from England’s white-ball team on the eve of the 2019 Cricket World Cup due to a breakdown in confidence. There were few dissenting voices, but Hales remained out of favour for three more years, in which England solidified their position as one of the world’s most lethal white-ball sides without him at the top of the order.
When England’s squad for the T20 World Cup was first named, Hales was conspicuously absent. Hales called Key, frustrated, to make his case for future consideration. As it turned out, Bairstow’s golfing accident prolonged that future consideration. After Key spoke with Buttler and the England players to secure their consent, Hales was announced as the squad’s alternative opener.
The right-hander’s record in Australia’s Big Bash League was particularly compelling. Hales has scored 1857 runs in 60 T20 matches in that tournament, with an average of 33.16 and a strike rate of 151.34. While it took him some time to get back into his stride after returning to England colours, the spectacular undefeated 86* against India proved that he is back to his best on the world stage.
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