Liam Livingstone: Maiden ODI century not enough to maintain number five spot

Liam Livingstone doubts his maiden ODI century will be enough to keep him at number five in the batting order when England are at full strength.

Filling in as captain for the injured Jos Buttler in the Caribbean and with a host of Test stars absent because of a bottleneck touring schedule pre-Christmas, Livingstone is batting higher than usual.

Accustomed to finishing off an innings from number six or seven, Livingstone seized his chance to come in earlier with a swashbuckling 124 not out off 85 balls to lead England to a series-levelling victory.

Having been dropped then recalled ahead of five ODIs against Australia in September after struggling with form and fitness in the previous two years, Livingstone has had a breakneck change of fortunes.

But with Buttler, plus Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Harry Brook and potentially others including Jamie Smith all vying for middle-order spots in future, Livingstone rejected the idea his promotion is for keeps.

The 31-year-old said: “I don’t think I’m ever going to bat at five for England in one-day cricket when we’ve got a full squad, I know that.

“This series was an opportunity for me to not only say what I thought but also for me to try and show people I mean what I say. I believe in my own ability and it’s nice when other people believe in it.

“There’s certainly people up there in the dressing room who do believe in that. To be out there in the middle at the end was pretty special.”

Livingstone – who is averaging 70 with the bat in his last seven innings, albeit aided slightly by three red-inkers – shared an instrumental 140-run stand with close friend Sam Curran on Saturday.

Curran was also one or two places higher than normal at number six but justified his elevation and the extra responsibility with a run-a-ball 52, only the second time he has registered an ODI half-century.

A T20 regular, where he bats higher for country and clubs alike, Curran was also axed from the 50-over side before the Australia series in September and did not earn a reprieve as Livingstone did.

But Livingstone said: “Sam’s been one of the best batters in domestic cricket, T20 and The Hundred batting at three and four. I believe in Sam, I’ve played a lot of cricket with him.

“We’ve been through a lot of things together and he’s one of my best mates in English cricket. He played beautifully, he’s a big reason we got the win.”

Livingstone’s knock in a five-wicket win to tee up a decider in Barbados on Wednesday was poignant as his last trip to the Caribbean for the T20 World Cup in June coincided with a family bereavement.

Upon reaching his hundred, Livingstone removed then raised his helmet and looked skywards in tribute to his grandfather Brian and said afterwards: “He’ll be looking down on me pretty proud.”

It was also a special occasion for 23-year-old fast bowler John Turner, who claimed his first international wickets at the weekend just a few days on from signing an England development contract.

Turner has been in England squads for more than a year but net practice and running drinks were his only duties until he was unleashed on the West Indies on Thursday and he has impressed so far.

“I’ve seen a few things on Twitter, seeing if I actually exist and all that type of thing,” Turner said with a smile.

By his own admission, Turner has been down on speeds so far but he knows he can touch 90mph and add to England’s growing portfolio of speedsters for all formats and conditions.

“I think the whole pace project, as they call it, is really exciting,” Turner said. “There’s a quite a lot of us that are in and around that.

“I’m very raw still, I’m very young, I’ve got a lot to learn and a lot to improve, but this is the best place to learn, you see how small the margins are.”