Jordan Cox’s reward for a breakthrough international summer will be to replace Ben Stokes on England’s central contracts list on October 1.Essex batsman Cox has taken his opportunity by scoring half-centuries in both of the wins over Pakistan so far in a three-match Test series that concludes at Edgbaston from Wednesday.Stokes, 35, quit international cricket in June but has remained on England’s wage bill beyond the customary one month for players announcing retirements and will only stop being paid in October. The arrangement is in recognition of his outstanding service over 15 years and 279 international caps.The current £1million-a-year deal for Stokes – it includes a hefty bonus for being captain – was scheduled to run for a further 12 months but he has begun building a freelance portfolio for 2026-27. A £210,000 contract with Adelaide Strikers – the Big Bash League’s limit for platinum signings – represents a start and he will also earn from commercial activities.But with a finite pool of money from which to pay England cricketers, the saving on Stokes will more than cover 25-year-old Cox’s entry level salary of £200,000 and the return of Ollie Robinson to the roster two years after he last featured. Jordan Cox will get an England central contract in October and will be paid the entry level salary of £200,000 Cox has taken his England chance by scoring half-centuries in both of the wins over Pakistan so far in a three-match Test seriesCox filled in for Ben Stokes at No 7 during the Oval Test defeat by New Zealand in midsummer, tasked with marshalling counter-attacks. He has impressed since returning to the team, following omission in Nottingham at the end of June, covering the absence of Jacob Bethell at No3, highlighting his versatility and a willingness to scrap in challenging new-ball conditions.Being able to fill a variety of roles will hold him in good stead when incoming head coach Stephen Fleming and captain Joe Root take stock of their personnel later this month, with the tour of South Africa in December and next summer’s Ashes in mind.Bethell remains on the sidelines as he recovers from meniscus damage in his right knee incurred during the one-day series against India, and having had a scan on Thursday, continues to take a cautious approach to his rehabilitation programme. ENGLAND WHITE-BALL SQUADS England T20 squad: Three matches v Sri Lanka, Sep 15 (Southampton), Sep 17 (Cardiff), Sep 19 (Manchester):H Brook (capt); Archer, Atkinson, Baker, Banton, Buttler, Coles, Cox, Dawson, Donald, Duckett, Jacks, Mahmood, J Overton, Rashid, Tongue.England ODI squad: Three matches v Sri Lanka, Sep 22 (Durham), Sep 24 (Leeds), Sep 27 (The Oval) Brook, Ahmed, Archer, Atkinson, Banton, Baker, Buttler, Cox, Crocombe, Dawson, Duckett, Jacks, J Overton, Rashid, Root, Tongue. <!- – ad: https://mads.dailymail.co.uk/v8/us/sport/cricket/article/other/mpu_factbox.html?id=mpu_factbox_1 – ->
Already ruled out of the twin limited-overs series against Sri Lanka on home soil later this month due to recent surgery, the triangular white-ball tournament in Pakistan next month will also come too soon, meaning he is targeting a return to white-ball action in Australia in November, ahead of the three Tests against the South Africans from mid-December.Although he says he would like to continue at No3, Bethell was an opening batsman as a schoolboy and could step up a place for that tour in the unlikely event that Emilio Gay’s form slump – 82 runs in five innings – sees him dropped. Gay, 26, has not been alone among England’s batsmen in struggling this summer, but while he can count himself unlucky to have been out to a Mohammad Abbas grubber, two leg-side strangles have been partly down to a closed grip on the handle that means he tries to play off his pads or hip with half a bat. That kind of vulnerability could be exposed on South Africa’s bouncy surfaces by an attack high in pace and only too willing to test opponents’ mettle against the short ball – one which Cox himself failed during his first incarnation as an England batsman in the Caribbean a couple of years ago. England opener Emilio Gay is under pressure after scoring just 82 runs in five innings If Gay is axed, Cox is an option to remain in the top three, although he would arguably provide greater value lower down the orderIf Gay is axed, Cox could be an option to remain in the top three, although he would arguably provide greater value lower down, below Harry Brook, a position suited to his confident Stokes-like ball-striking. The one potential stumbling block, however, is a lack of a Stokes-esque figure to balance the team. Dan Lawrence has filled the all-rounder role at No6 against Pakistan, notionally offering some off-spin (it has not been used in any volume against opponents yet to make 200 in the series).Debate about where Cox fits, however, is missing the point, because in a very short space of time he has shown that he fits somewhere. A central contract is testament to that.