Harry Brook going to World Cup after all as England drop Jason Roy

Roy was included in a provisional list of 15 last month, with Brook a surprising omission, but the selectors have back-tracked by making a last-minute switch for the tournament in India.

Heartbreak for Roy, whose pick up and throw led to the run out which sealed the trophy at Lord’s four years ago, spells elation for Brook, who had been coming to terms with being the odd man out.

It is thought that white-ball coach Matthew Mott made the call to deliver the bad news to Roy, having finalised the squad with captain Jos Buttler, selector Luke Wright and managing director of men’s cricket Rob Key.

Wright said in a statement: “The strength of the group has meant that we have had to make some tough decisions on world-class players, with Jason Roy missing out and Harry Brook coming into the squad.

“We have selected a squad we are confident can go to India and win the World Cup. We are blessed with an incredibly strong group of white-ball players which was underlined by the performances in the series win against a very good New Zealand team.”

England will now travel to India with eight of the squad that triumphed on home soil last time around, joined by the fresh blood of Brook, who has played just six ODIs to Roy’s 116 but is viewed as a future all-format star.

He was unable to make a watertight case for inclusion as he scored 37 in three innings during Roy’s absence against the Black Caps, but his versatility and promise counted in his favour.