Jason Roy’s blistering one-day form earns him a chance at Test level

England have been searching for a solution to their opening conundrum in recent years and have turned to the 28-year-old after a superb World Cup on home soil.

Here, PA looks at how Roy has forced his way into the Test team reckoning.

Becoming a limited-overs mainstay

Roy came into the one-day team after the disastrous 2015 World Cup and made his debut against Ireland on May 8, 2015.

But it did not take long for him to claim his place as a regular opener as he recorded two half-centuries in just his second series with the squad.

He went on to record his first hundred in the UAE against Pakistan before hitting 162 in the series against Sri Lanka – one of two centuries.

Roy’s form dipped in 2017 as he struggled against the West Indies, Ireland and South Africa before enduring a poor ICC Champions Trophy campaign. His place was questioned but he quickly hit back in style.

A career-high score of 180 followed in Australia last year as England propelled to the top of the ODI rankings, with him and Jonny Bairstow forming a strong opening partnership.

Roy has played in 19 series (of two or more matches) and England have won 15 of those – highlighting his importance to the team’s rise up the rankings.

Big-hitting Roy shines during World Cup

Having developed into a central figure in the England line-up, Roy warmed up for the World Cup in fine style by cracking two half-centuries and 114 in three innings in the final ODI series before the tournament started against Pakistan.

He continued his form by smashing 11 boundaries and four maximums during an unbeaten 89 in just 46 balls against Afghanistan in the final warm-up match and the opener began his campaign with a fine 54 in the first group game.

Roy hit just eight in defeat to Pakistan but hit back in superb style to produce his best score of the competition – 153 against Bangladesh – to kick off his World Cup with a bang.

Injury hurt England

Just as Roy got into his rhythm, he found himself out of the England team with a tear in his left hamstring picked up against the West Indies.

The injury, initially, ruled the opener out of the round-robin clashes against Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, which England surprisingly lost to the latter.

He was not risked for the match against Australia, where they fell to a 64-run defeat, leaving England’s World Cup hopes in doubts with must-win contests against India and New Zealand in the final two pool matches.

Winning contributions

Roy returned from injury to post successive opening century stands with Jonny Bairstow against India and the Black Caps, scoring 66 and 60 in the process, to help England secure a last-four spot.

England faced arch-nemesis Australia i nthe semi-final and Roy took the mantle of aggressor as they chased down a target of 224 at Edgbaston.

The highlight came when he hit Steve Smith for three successive sixes as he clubbed 85 off just 65 deliveries before a controversial dismissal by Pat Cummins as he guided England to their first World Cup final since 1992.

But his contributions did not stop there. Roy could only muster 17 runs in the final against New Zealand as the match went to a super over after both teams scored 241.

The opener made two misfields during the dramatic over, but came up trumps with a fine throw to wicketkeeper Jos Buttler to run out Martin Guptill from the final ball of the match as England claimed their maiden World Cup crown.

Test opener search continues

England have long searched for an opening partner for Alastair Cook since the retirement of Andrew Strauss in August 2012, but this was exacerbated when England’s all-time leading runscorer decided to quit international cricket in September last year.

This gave an opportunity for Rory Burns, who topped the runscoring charts in the 2018 County Championship season, a chance to stake his claim alongside Keaton Jennings for the series in Sri Lanka and West Indies.

However, both players struggled for consistency with Jennings being replaced by Joe Denly for the second Test against the West Indies, but the Kent all-rounder mustered just 23 runs from his two innings before Jennings came back in.

The Lancashire batsman has not been selected for the Test match against Ireland, and this has left the door open for Roy to come into the fold.

Having faced the best bowlers in the world in competitions such as the Indian Premier League and Australia’s Big Bash, the selectors are confident he can deal with the pressures of opening in red-ball cricket and may also bring his aggressive style to get England on the front foot.