I think most of the England players will tour Bangladesh: Trevor Bayliss

Team England will set out on the tour to Bangladesh in the first week of October following which they will cross borders and land in India for another grilling series. The team isn’t just concerned of the Asian conditions that will definitely test a lot of their cricketing skills but also about the security arrangements in Bangladesh. Following the terrorist attacks in the capital city of Dhaka there were dark clouds on the tour but England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) was satisfied with the report its panel filed on assessing the situation and the security cover planned.

Only one English player in Moeen Ali has publicly confirmed that he is willing to tour Bangladesh. A couple of other players in Test skipper Alastair Cook and Jonny Bairstow have probably decided in favor of it but are yet to finalize it.

Coach Trevor Bayliss and his assistant Paul Farbrace are clear that they will go to Bangladesh. The management initially intended to pick one squad that would complete both the tours, but with the current situation are not really sure about the ones who would agree or disapprove and thus there is a possibility that ECB might send in a different squad for both the tours. “It would be a bit hard to actually pick one [squad] and then another one. That could get down to who wants to go and who doesn’t I suppose, but ultimately it would be best for the team to have one team [for both tours],” he said.

Will the selectors take the tour of Bangladesh as a preparatory one for the tougher one in India and give the guys who perform well there a go for the following series? Bayliss said, “Well, they might not say that, but it’s a bridge we’ve got to cross if that happens. I’ve sort of got the fingers crossed that it doesn’t occur. It might be a difficult decision if that happens.”

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Though Cook might have behind closed doors given his affirmation for the tour, ODI skipper Eoin Morgan probably has 48 hours to let the selectors know his decision before they sit down to pick the squad. Bayliss also admitted that he thinks a majority of the regular players will fly with the team. “I think most of them will,” he said. “I’m not sure if there’s anyone come out, certainly they haven’t said anything to me one way or another.”

The coach also said that while most of the players who were a part of the squad in the recent series will be retained but the selectors might consider the county performances and opt to bring in a couple of new players. “I know James Whitaker [the national selector] would like to get as much of the county season in before it’s selected. They are probably like me, doodling and picking teams. I think in my mind I’m reasonably close. There are one or two positions in a squad of 16 that could go either way.”

Liam Dawson who made his ODI debut in Cardiff will be one of the names that will definitely be discussed since he impressed most including Bayliss with his “game sense” and “guts” in the game against Pakistan.

“He will certainly be in discussions, I would have thought,” Bayliss said. “He’s a guy who’s got something about him. He bats, bowls and he’s a pretty good fielder as well. But it’s his game sense, he knows how to play the game, he almost knows what’s going to happen before it happens, he’s one of those type of players.

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“They came out to attack him playing his first game and he took it on the chin, he kept going, he kept bowling. He flattened it out a little bit I suppose but he didn’t bowl badly even when they were getting hold of him, one or two in those first three or four overs just went wide of mid-on. On another day they could be out, but he had enough guts to throw one or two up and he got his rewards in his second spell.”

One player who will be concerned about his slot is Test opener Alex Hales. Though he fired up the ODI series didn’t have the best of times in the middle in the longer format and that might work out well in favor of 19-year old Lancashire opener Haseeb Hameed. Hameed had a great season in the County Championship where he scored 1129 runs with a striking average of 53.76. The selectors might opt for him to open along with Cook and that will make him the youngest Test player for England since Ben Hollioake in 1997.

“If he’s good enough, he’s old enough. No, I wouldn’t have any problem. There have been some young players making some runs who are coming into calculations which is very exciting.”