Alex Hales has no regrets about skipping Bangladesh tour

England batsman Alex Hales will be back in English colors for the limited overs tour in India. Earlier, he was not a part of the Test team that was drubbed 4-0 at the hands of Virat Kohli-led side. Hales had backed out of the Bangladesh tour that preceded the Indian tour. His decision came in line due to security concerns. As quoted in the Dailymail.co.uk, the opener has no regrets about his decision of skipping the Bangladesh tour.

He also mentioned that pulling out from the tour had nothing to do with his ouster from the Test series in India. His absence saw the likes of Ben Duckett, Haseeb Hameed and Keaton Jennings get their lucky breaks.

“I am not sure me pulling out of the tour affected Test selection. I guess I will never know and I am not going to go asking the selectors whether that was the case. If I am honest, I think I was probably 50-50 for selection,” quoted Alex Hales.

He further added that the decision of pulling out was not easy. He had thorough discussions with his closed ones before he made the final call.

“Being knocked down the pecking order was a risk I knew I was taking by making that decision. At no point was it easy. There were sleepless nights for quite a while and a lot of thought went into it — speaking to family, speaking to friends, speaking to my girlfriend,” quoted the English batsman.

He credited the likes of Hameed and Jennings who stepped up in his absence and played really well in the Indian conditions. He reiterated that he had to weigh the pleasure of playing and risking his life on the balance.

“But if I had to put my life on one or the other I would say they would probably have replaced me. Credit to those who have come in and played exceptionally well, they looked really good when they put the shirt on in India,” he added.

The tour eventually turned out to be successful one in Bangladesh. England won the ODI series and the Test series was drawn level at 1-1. Alex Hales cited that this was a good news for the Bangladesh cricket as the tour progressed unscathed. However, sticking to his words, he cited that his decision was not uncalled for as even Australian team had backed out from touring Bangladesh.

“By all accounts, speaking to the team when they were there, they were all looked after really well. That was brilliant news and great for Bangladesh cricket as well. But no western team had toured since those attacks in Dhaka, and an Australian team had pulled out of a tour there. I am not quite sure I could have had all my focus on cricket while being out there. I stand by my decision. It’s 100 per cent no regrets. You can’t go through life carrying them with you,” he conceded.