Alex Hales set to remain on the outside looking in for England

Hales hasn’t featured for his country since March 2019 and despite a return to form that doesn’t look likely to change in the near future

Sydney Thunder batsman Alex Hales (Getty Images)

England cricket fans don't have to cast their minds too far back to remember a time when the limited-overs side was crying out for some impetus at the very top of the order.

The days of run-a-ball, time at the crease one-day knocks are not that far in the rear-view mirror. Perhaps, given the woeful lack of success had while playing them, it’s best they are forgotten.

But no more. England's white-ball revolution has been built from the top down with Eoin Morgan's newly-aggressive side going and going hard from ball one.

Openers Jason Roy and Jonny Bairstow have led the way with belligerent hitting straight from the get-go with no opportunity to score turned down with the World Cup win of 2019 living proof of the success of a new no compromise, see ball, hit ball approach.

One man who hasn't been part of that success, however, is Alex Hales.

The Nottinghamshire opener hasn't played for his country since March 2019 having been exiled on the eve of the World Cup following a failed drugs test.

The subsequent tournament win made any calls for his inclusion moot, but a return to red-hot form over the last 12 months have many calling for a recall.

Hales starred at the recent Big Bash in Australia, topping the run-scoring charts with 543 runs for the Sydney Thunder at a blistering strike-rate of 161.60 per hundred balls.

Not many teams have the luxury of leaving that kind of firepower on the sidelines but captain Morgan remains unmoved.

"I think our position on Alex still remains the same," Morgan said on the eve of the T20 series with India that starts on Friday.

"He's not in the squad and the squad is very difficult to get back into. Alex's situation is obviously very unique, the quality of the player that he is has never been in doubt. Like I've said before, time is a great healer.

"Only time will tell, but you look at the strength of our squad at the moment and areas that we're trying to improve - one area we don't struggle for players, it's probably in the top three."

England batsmen Alex Hales and Eoin Morgan (AFP via Getty Images)

This five-match series is set to be the perfect tune-up for the T20 World Cup that is scheduled to take place back in India in the autumn.

England are throwing all of their efforts behind their white-ball squads this year, even with a home Test series against India and an away Ashes meeting with Australia on the cards over the next 12 months.

But it appears the best Hales can hope for is to train with the squad again with national selector Ed Smith having floated that idea in recent months.

Morgan appears steadfast though and, as with all things in this one-day setup, holds the casting vote.

"One area every summer that we try and grow and learn more about is players outside of the squad," he added.

"We'll have guys come in and bowl, bat in the nets and just be around the group. Last summer, we weren't able to do that but this summer it's looking like restrictions and bubbles will be a little bit more relaxed, depending on vaccinations and spikes. It could present an opportunity to have Alex in and around."

The pitches in Ahmedabad, where the T20 series will begin, came in for heavy criticism during the Tests with the third contest over well inside two days and the fourth not lasting much longer.

Many observers, including former England skipper Michael Vaughan, believed the surfaces weren't good enough for the international game with Joe Root's side blown away cheaply on more than one occasion.

A lack of application against spin was perhaps more to blame than the pitch itself in the longer format and Morgan is keen for his own group to be tested to their maximum ahead of the tournament later this year.

"Naturally the square itself does offer a bit of turn - which is what we want from this tour," he added.

"Going back to the 2016 World Cup in India, we didn't necessarily play on big turners but there were some really, really low-scoring games on really dry surfaces.

"We want to go through that ourselves. On a turning pitch like we witnessed in 2016 - 120 plays 90, very low scoring games in this day and age - that's an area we need more experience in because we've not played in a lot of games like that."

That experience is unlikely to come in the form of Hales, though. His stay on the outside looking in looks set to continue.