England batter makes a return after almost five years for final India ODI

Tom Banton, who last played for England in an ODI in August 2020, has been called-up as cover for the third ODI and final against India in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, 12 February. He is set to arrive in the country on Monday, 10 February.

England made the call to bring in the batter after Jacob Bethell sustained a left hamstring injury in the first ODI in Nagpur. The injury is set to be assessed further when the team arrive in Ahmedabad, but the all-rounder is unlikely to be fit for the ICC Champions Trophy.

"I'm pretty sure he's been ruled out of the Champions Trophy, to be honest," England captain Jos Buttler said of Bethell.

"That's really disappointing for him, obviously he played nicely the other day and has been one of the really exciting players so it's a shame that the injury is going to rule him out."

Banton has been in outstanding form in T20 franchise cricket, topping the scoring charts in the ongoing ILT20 competition in UAE, amassing 493 runs from 11 innings at an average of 54.77, including two centuries.

The right-hand batter has featured in six ODIs for England, in addition to 14 T20Is, with his last appearance coming in August 2020 and January 2022 respectively.

India currently lead the three-match ODI series 1-0, following a comfortable four-wicket win in the opening ODI in Nagpur.