Morgan admits it’s ‘difficult’ to drop Hales even with Stokes waiting

Alex Hales’ match-winning half-century against India has given England a tough call to make if they want to make room for fit-again Ben Stokes in Sunday’s series decider.

Captain Eoin Morgan acknowledged Hales’ unbeaten 58 had made a strong case for his inclusion in Bristol, even if Stokes is available for the final Twenty20 International today.

Stokes was watching from the dug-out, having recovered from his hamstring injury, as England’s bowlers restricted the tourists to 148-5 in Cardiff – and then Hales led the way from No 4 after early wickets had raised the stakes. He hit a six off the first ball of the Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s last over when England needed 12 to win.

“Alex always makes it difficult [to drop him], particularly in T20 cricket,” Morgan said following Friday’s five-wicket win.

“He’s played a lot for us. He’s one of our highest runscorers, a very experienced campaigner.

“An innings like that tonight makes him a pretty strong case for the next game.”

Asked if he has any idea yet on how to fit Stokes back into the line-up, Morgan said: “No – that’s the simple answer.

“Ben’s obviously a fantastic player, and there will be a difficult decision to make.

“We’ve made calls like this in the past, but we hope we’ll make it for the betterment of the team – and put out our strongest XI.”

While all-rounder Stokes may be considered ready to play only as a batsman, Hales could hardly have done any more to cement his place. He pressed his claims already with a big hundred on his home ground in Nottingham against Australia in last month’s one-day international series. “He really did play brilliantly,” Morgan said. “He’s played a lot of T20 International cricket, and around the world – and he certainly used that tonight.

“Having the composure to play quite a mature innings, as he did ... then towards the end, he’s not known as a big hitter but anybody who watched the game at Trent Bridge will realise he hits the ball quite a long way – even yorkers.

“We had quite a lot of confidence in him, but it is very nice to get over the line.”