England's injury list grows with Livingstone ruled out of remainder of the Hundred
England will pick their squad for the seven-T20I tour of Pakistan tour next week and might have to name an expanded contingent of players
Matt Roller28-Aug-2022England’s injury crisis has deepened ahead of their seven-match T20I series in Pakistan and the T20 World Cup this winter, with Liam Livingstone becoming the latest to be ruled out of the final stages of the men’s Hundred.Livingstone was the MVP at the 2021 men’s Hundred as Birmingham Phoenix finished top of the table after the group stage, before losing in the final. But an ankle injury means it’s the end of the Hundred for him this time around.England’s white-ball set-up had hoped the Hundred would give key players the opportunity to find form ahead of a busy winter but a significant number of players have had to withdraw through injury.
Jos Buttler, England’s white-ball captain, picked up a calf injury and is not expecting to play every game in Pakistan, while Jason Roy missed Oval Invincibles’ win against London Spirit on Saturday night with “lower back stiffness”.Chris Jordan (finger) and Tymal Mills (toe) both picked up knocks while Richard Gleeson is yet to feature for Manchester Originals after a series of niggles. Reece Topley pulled out of the final stages to manage his workload, while Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse, Saqib Mahmood, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood were all out with injuries.England will pick their squad for the Pakistan tour next week and the scale of their injury crisis, plus a packed schedule that will see them play seven T20Is in 13 days, means they are likely to select a larger touring party than usual.Will Jacks is expected to feature after a breakout season in the Blast and the Hundred, while his Surrey and Invincibles team-mate Tom Curran will be back in the reckoning after a long injury-enforced absence from the England set-up.Livingstone’s absence is a significant blow to Phoenix’s chances of reaching the knockout stages, as they have lost their leading run-scorer and a key allrounder ahead of two vital games against Originals and London Spirit.Phoenix could go top of the table with a win against Originals on Sunday night but defeat would see Originals leapfrog them and leave them relying on results elsewhere in the final round of games.They have signed Sol Budinger, the explosive Nottinghamshire opener, as a replacement, but are likely to bring one of Dan Mousley, Brett D’ Oliveira or Graeme van Buuren off the bench and into their side on Sunday night.Phoenix said in a statement that Livingstone would be assessed by the ECB’s medical team. Craig Flindall, their general manager, said: “We’re disappointed to lose Liam, not just for his performances on the pitch but also his leadership within the group.”