England's World Cup batting concerns: Hales' stock falls, Vince on the rise

For months, England's World Cup batting line-up has been a thing of stability and global envy - a squad of interchangeably explosive hitters, backed up in the middle order by a raft of bowling allrounders. But with just over a month to go until the tournament opener against South Africa at The Oval on May 30, the news of Alex Hales' failed drugs test, allied to the dislocated shoulder suffered by their reserve Sam Billings, has given their best-laid plans a new sheen of disarray. Here's an updated look at how those batting stocks are faring.

Fears…

Alex Hales
Where to begin with Hales' latest bout of career self-harm? Having finally turned a corner after his role in the Bristol fracas, his plaintive statement last month, that he didn't want to make "mediocre decisions" anymore, has already aged spectacularly badly. He was never likely to be a first-choice in the World Cup XI, thanks as much to the quality of the men around him as his own decision-making, but a 21-day drugs ban in the final countdown to the tournament has undoubtedly jeopardised even that squad berth. Assuming he is retained in the final cut on May 23, will he be in the right state of mind - let alone form - to be the super-sub that England are bound to have to call upon in the course of an arduous six-week tournament?

Jason Roy
The holder of England's record ODI score - 180 against Australia at Melbourne in 2017-18 - Roy is such a shoo-in for England's first-choice World Cup XI that much of the pre-season talk has centred around his potential for a Test debut during the Ashes in August. But he hasn't taken the field for Surrey's last two Royal London matches after suffering a back spasm against Gloucestershire. Surrey's coach, Michael Di Venuto, insisted he will be back up and running before long, but his vulnerability just goes to show how vital that squad depth will be.

Eoin Morgan
No major concerns surrounding England's captain, although his early-season form - including some rare red-ball outings - hasn't been quite as rambunctious as his international displays had been in the preceding few months. Morgan did, however, miss Middlesex's victory over Surrey in the London derby on Thursday after complaining of sore shins.

Sam Billings
The nearly man of England's white-ball squad, Billings seemed at last to have shown his worth in slamming a matchwinning 87 from 47 balls in England's final T20I against West Indies in March - and his selection for next week's Ireland ODI was an indication that he was at the head of the waiting list should a squad vacancy crop up. Instead, on the same day of Hales' self-sabotage, Billings was himself ruled out for three to five months, effectively the entire season, after dislocating his shoulder within minutes of taking the field for Kent against Glamorgan.

Hopes…

Jonny Bairstow
The undoubted good news story in the England squad. His IPL debut was an unmitigated triumph - his partnership with former bete noire, David Warner, was a revelation, and he will link up with the England squad in Cardiff on Saturday with a haul of 445 runs at a strike rate of 157 - second only to Warner for the whole competition - and with his confidence as sky-high as it has ever been in an England career that has often been conducted against a mildly paranoid backdrop of point-proving.

James Vince
From the very margins of England recognition to the brink of a World Cup berth in the space of two breaking news stories. Not that Vince would have been paying much attention to the updates on Billings' injury lay-off, or Hales' travails. He was too busy racking up a monstrous 190 from 154 for Hampshire against Gloucestershire at the Ageas Bowl, an innings laced with the sort of power, poise and beauty that has made his supporters sigh for years. It's not impossible that he has timed his run to perfection.

Ben Foakes
Another unlikely beneficiary of others' misfortune. Even Foakes' county coach, di Venuto, recognises that his man lacks the raw power of his England rivals, and it's probably the need for someone to wear the gloves in the absence of Bairstow, Jos Buttler and now the luckless Billings, that has earned him his opportunity against Ireland and Pakistan next week. But, he has scotched expectations once already in his England career with the manner of his Test batting in Sri Lanka before Christmas, and he will be going to Ireland on the back of three consecutive Royal London half-centuries.

Joe Root
England's Test captain and ODI linchpin is reassuringly fit, and although he has not been involved in the Royal London Cup, he began with scores of 73, 130 not out and 94 in two Championship outings for Yorkshire. The selectors will be praying he doesn't walk under a ladder any time over the next few weeks.