The English Cricket Board (ECB) revealed the list of their central contracts for 2022–2023 earlier today. Surprisingly, only 18 players—two fewer than what was announced last year—have made it to the main list.
Compared to last year, a total of 30 players have had their contracts extended, an increase from 27 to 20. Dawid Malan and Jason Roy, two of their mainstays, are surprisingly absent. It seemed nearly clear that Roy would miss out because he has continued to experience difficulties.
Malan thinks that things have been rather strange. When the last contracts were released, the left-handed batter had re-joined the Test squad, but he is currently on the sidelines. In contrast, Roy has played really poorly; as of right now, he averages 24.20 in ODIs and 19.04 in T20s.
Roy only managed to score 78 or so runs in his previous six England matches. Malan’s situation is also very dismal because England has not yet selected him for the 50-over format. The cricket board has also ignored Surrey’s starting quarterback Rory Burns in addition to Malan and Roy.
Ben Foakes, an English wicketkeeper-batsman, won his maiden central contract after putting up an outstanding performance against teams like New Zealand, South Africa, and India over the English summer. Liam Livingstone, a talented hitter, has earned his debut appearance on the main list.
The other player without a contract right now is Eoin Morgan, who resigned from international cricket in June. As a result of their strong belief in the speedster Jofra Archer, the English Cricket Board has kept him on its main list despite a serious elbow injury.
Although there are now six increment contracts instead of four, players like Chris Jordan, Tom Curran, and Dom Bess have not been given any ECB deals. The list has been expanded to include David Willey, which includes others like Harry Brook, Matthew Potts, and Reece Topley.
They have all received their first central contract. Malan and Jordan’s exclusion surprised many people because they continue to appear in practically every format of white ball games. Surprisingly, both are currently stationed in Australia as members of England’s T20 World Cup team.