London: England has confirmed Alastair Cook as captain in its preliminary squad of 30 players for next year's cricket World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Cook is joined in the squad named Saturday by all those chosen for the current tour of Sri Lanka and frontline pace bowlers Stuart Broad and James Anderson, currently recovering from their knee injuries in South Africa.
Former linchpin batsman Jonathan Trott is one notable omission from the extended party for the tournament, which starts Feb. 14 and features 50-over matches. Trott had to leave last winter's Ashes with a stress-related illness but gradually returned to form and well-being for Warwickshire during the English summer.
Jonny Bairstow is one of three wicketkeeping options, a position currently held by Jos Buttler, while Surrey batsman Jason Roy, who made his international debut in a Twenty20 against India at Edgbaston in September, is also in the 30.
Selectors are expected to announce a 15-man squad for the World Cup later this month, shortly after the tour of Sri Lanka ends.
Preliminary squad: Alastair Cook (captain), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire), Gary Balance (Yorkshire), Ian Bell (Warwickshire), Ravi Bopara (Essex), Tim Bresnan (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jack Brooks (Yorkshire), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Steven Finn (Middlesex), Harry Gurney (Nottinghamshire), Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire), Chris Jordan (Sussex), Craig Kieswetter (Somerset), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Stephen Parry (Lancashire), Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire), Liam Plunkett (Yorkshire), Boyd Rankin (Warwickshire), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Jason Roy (Surrey), Ben Stokes (Durham), James Taylor (Nottinghamshire), James Tredwell (Kent), James Vince (Hampshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Luke Wright (Sussex).
