Samit Patel Got chance to shape up for Cricket World Cup from England

Samit Patel Got chance to shape up for Cricket World Cup from England

Christmas in the Samit Patel household has suddenly become a guilty pleasure after the Nottinghamshire all-rounder, shunned by England for the past two years because he is deemed to be overweight, was named in a provisional squad of 30 for next year's World Cup.

England have not relaxed their uncompromising stance on Patel's fitness, merely giving him another reminder that he can still have an international future if he meets minimum fitness requirements, which will be something to ponder as he tucks into a third helping of trifle.

The squad will be slimmed down on January 19, but it will be a major turn-up if the same applies to Patel. He finished a highly successful one-day summer for Nottinghamshire looking heftier than ever, much to England's frustration as they see an international career slipping away.

England's chief selector, Geoff Miller, made it abundantly clear that the stance on Patel was unchanged when he was excluded from England's squad for the one-day series against Australia. They have received no feedback since that he has become more fitness conscious, but have grasped an ideal opportunity to formally check on his fitness.


"Samit has been included in this preliminary squad and, along with every other player named, will be required to meet individual fitness criteria before the squad is finalised," Miller said. "There is still some time to pass before the final squad is selected so all 30 players have sufficient time to press for selection."

Patel, in terms of cricket statistics, had an excellent summer for Nottinghamshire in one-day cricket in 2010. He finished fifth in the Professional Cricketers Association's Most Valuable Player rankings after excellent performances in both 20 and 40-over competitions. His positive middle-order batting and useful left-arm spinners would make him an asset on a tournament staged in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

The squad, which will be reduced to 15 names on January 19, also includes Stuart Broad, who is commentating on Test Match Special while he recovers from a torn abdominal muscle which has ruled him out of the rest of the Australia tour. Broad returns home to step up his rehabilitation after the Perth Test.

England's 30 is a relatively unimaginative affair. All 16 members of the Ashes squad are included, a decision that certainly in the case of Alastair Cook, who has no realistic prospects of a return to the ODI side, seem more designed to maximise feelgood for the Ashes series rather than encourage another up-and-coming young player.

England's group includes Bangladesh, India, Ireland, Netherlands, South Africa and West Indies. They will play two warm-up games against Canada and Pakistan before beginning their World Cup challenge on February 22 against Netherlands in Nagpur.

England provisional World Cup 30: Andrew Strauss (Middlesex, capt), James Adams (Hampshire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Ian Bell (Warwickshire), Ravi Bopara (Essex), Tim Bresnan (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Paul Collingwood (Durham), Alastair Cook (Essex), Steven Davies (Surrey), Jade Dernbach (Surrey), Steven Finn (Middlesex), James Hildreth (Somerset), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset), Michael Lumb (Hampshire), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire), Kevin Pietersen (Surrey), Liam Plunkett (Durham), Graeme Swann (Nottinghamshire), James Tredwell (Kent), Chris Tremlett (Surrey), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Luke Wright (Sussex), Michael Yardy (Sussex).