England’s Ben Stokes takes guard in hostile West Indies territory | Vic Marks

The first of three one-day internationals between West Indies and England takes place in Antigua on Friday. For one of the teams the Champions Trophy, which is being held in Birmingham, Cardiff and London in June, looms large. This is a good time for preparation.

England have hosted the Champions Trophy twice in the past 13 years – in 2004 and 2013 they were runners-up at the Oval and Edgbaston, respectively, after they had seemed well-placed to win both games – and somehow they are the hosts again in 2017.

Eoin Morgan and Paul Farbrace (Trevor Bayliss is having a bit of a sabbatical) will want to use the fortnight in the Caribbean to enhance the chances of that elusive 50-over trophy – England have never won a major one of those.

Meanwhile West Indies are none too bothered by this summer’s Champions Trophy, mainly because they are not in it. Having slipped out of the top eight in the ODI rankings, they failed to qualify. This may be reflected by the squad chosen for this three-match series, the first one to be overseen by the new coach, Stuart Law, a no-nonsense Australian and one of the best ever one-Test wonders. There are several names that are not immediately familiar beyond the Caribbean. There are two Powells, two Brathwaites and a slim Hope – in the shape of wicketkeeper Shai – in the squad, led by Jason Holder.

England’s “young” team is vastly more experienced and must be expected to win. It is almost at full strength, but not quite. David Willey has had to withdraw after surgery on his left shoulder, which gives Steven Finn a chance of rehabilitation. Alex Hales hopes to join the party late provided a scan of his right hand reveals nothing untoward on Monday.

Hales has had a grim winter so far after opting out of the Bangladesh tour. He was not required for the Tests in India; he could not contribute much against the white ball thereafter; then he fractured a hand when diving for a catch in Cuttack. Nor was he sought after by the coaches of the Big Bash or the IPL, despite his impressive record in T20 cricket.

Hales’s confidence must be dented after all that but he remains England’s preferred choice alongside Jason Roy at the top of the order in this format. Farbrace will, no doubt, be doing his best to boost the Nottinghamshire opener. If Hales is not fit then the ubiquitous Sam Billings is likely to deputise even though he can hardly be regarded as a specialist opener.

With an ever more crowded hierarchy of senior players Morgan will, for the first time, have England’s Test captain and vice-captain in his team, while Jos Buttler continues as the vice-captain in white-ball cricket. There will be more stripes out there than in a clash between Newcastle United and Sheffield Wednesday, not that Morgan is likely to worry about that.

Another clash to look out for will inevitably involve Ben Stokes. Sadly a duel with Marlon Samuels will not be possible since the Jamaican, who somehow manages to provoke the ire of so many of his opponents, has not been selected even though his bowling action is now deemed to be legal.

Samuels has been omitted because he declined to play sufficient domestic cricket in the Caribbean this winter, which is a rigid stipulation of the West Indies board.

But Stokes, bolstered by his new IPL status, is bound to be a centre of attention especially when he is running up to bowl at Brathwaite (that’s Carlos, the hitter, rather than Kraigg, the grinder). None of us has quite forgotten what happened when he last bowled at the powerful Barbadian in Kolkata and no doubt Stokes will occasionally be reminded of this from the stands in Antigua and Barbados.