Chris Jordan set to take up mantle as Steven Finn flys home
Published:The tour from hell claimed another victim as it was announced that England’s Steven Finn will fly home from Australia having not bowled a single competitive ball this winter.
It was yet another sorry piece of news in a catalogue of misery for the English cricket side, as one of their brightest young prospects failed to correct the technical faults that had seen him lose his spot in the first place.
Finn is the youngest player to have taken 50 Test wickets for the Three Lions but hasn’t been seen in his whites since the first Ashes Test in England last summer.
Now, despite being ranked the third best ODI bowler in world cricket, Finn has been banished from the squad entirely in the hope that a complete break from all things bat and ball will help him rediscover his pace and accuracy.
The disintegration of the England touring party Down Under led many to believe that Finn would be the bowler to take the team forward in all forms of the game, instead a new man can take the mantle in his absence, with Chris Jordan at the head of the queue.
The Sussex man has only made two ODI appearances in his international career, but can expect to feature in most, if not all, of the remaining 50 over clashes with the old enemy.
The former Surrey quick has impressed in those outings, following up his 3-51 on debut with 1-50 in the first ODI of this tour. That second return would have looked far rosier too had two catches not been shelled off him.
Jordan is 4/1 to be England’s leading wicket taker in the current coloured-kit battle with Australia, and 20/1 to claim man-of-the match honours in the second ODI, both of which look good value given his encouraging start and likely run in the side.
With 61 wickets in the County Championship last season, it won’t be long before the man they imaginatively call “CJ” will be donning the white kit of the Test side, either with or without Finn.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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