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Pace bowler Matthew Potts could be back in contention for England’s Ashes tour after being released from the T20s squad in Ireland in order to play in the County Championship.
The move is one of three changes to England’s white-ball squads, with opener Ben Duckett given a much needed rest from the T20s against South Africa and all-rounder Sam Curran recalled for the first time under head coach Brendon McCullum.
Potts, 26, won the last of his 10 caps against New Zealand in Hamilton in December.
The Durham man has a central contract and had been a regular around the England Test team under McCullum before being overlooked for the home series against India in the summer.
Potts fell down the pecking order behind Jamie Overton, who played in the final Test against India in July.
But Overton retired from red-ball cricket on Monday, ruling himself out of this winter’s Ashes series.
With Chris Woakes battling to recover from a dislocated shoulder, and possibly unlikely to tour Australia anyway given his past struggles down under, there is one pace bowling slot available in an England squad to be announced at the end of this month.
Exciting prospect Sonny Baker looked to be favourite to benefit from Overton’s retirement, but the 22-year-old struggled on his one-day international debut against South Africa at Headingley on Tuesday.
Potts is not part of the squad for the ODIs or T20s against South Africa and has now been freed from the party for the three T20s against Ireland in Dublin, beginning on 17 September.
England felt he would not be first-choice for those matches and, given he is now back in contention for the Ashes, would be better served being available to Durham for the final three rounds of the County Championship season.
Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Brydon Carse and Josh Tongue are likely to be the quicks in the Ashes squad, with Potts in the frame for the sixth spot.
Opener Duckett looked visibly jaded in the defeat by South Africa in the second one-day international at Lord’s on Thursday.
The left-hander, 30, went straight from the gruelling five Tests against India into The Hundred, then to the series against the Proteas.
At Lord’s he was far from his fluent best, taking 33 balls over a scratchy 14. Though England have already lost the series 2-0, Duckett will play in the final ODI in Southampton on Sunday, then take a break.
He is likely to be in the squad for October’s white-ball series in New Zealand as part of the build-up to the Ashes opener in Perth on 21 November.
Curran has been rewarded for his fine form in The Hundred and gets the opportunity to impress McCullum.
Once an England white-ball regular, the 27-year-old has not featured since McCullum assumed control of the limited-overs teams at the beginning of the year.
Curran goes straight into the squad for the three T20s against South Africa and will remain for the T20s in Ireland.
Having last played for England in West Indies 10 months ago, he gives England a seam-bowling all-round option they badly missed at Lord’s on Thursday.
Spinners Jacob Bethell and Will Jacks were employed as the fifth bowler, conceding 112 runs in their combined 10 overs.
