HAMPSHIRE have been unsuccessful in their attempt to have James Vince and Liam Dawson made available for the Royal London One-Day Cup final after both were named in England's World Cup squad.

Chairman Rod Bransgrove has been in discussions with the ECB and the ICC to have the pair released for the match at Lord's on Saturday despite the game taking place on the same day as England's warm-up match against Australia at the Ageas Bowl.

However, Hampshire will contest the final against Somerset without Vince - their captain and leading run-scorer in the competition - and all-rounder Dawson after the ICC confirmed that its regulations would not allow them to play.

An ECB spokesperson said: "ECB made representations to ICC on behalf of the board and Hampshire Cricket in an attempt to ensure Liam Dawson and James Vince were available for their county for the Royal London One-Day Cup final.

"ICC regulations around global tournaments are clear that squad players are not permitted to play in domestic cricket after the start of the Support Period (May 23) and while we understand the ICC decision we are nevertheless disappointed that it will lead to two leading international players missing our showpiece domestic final at Lord's."

With Jofra Archer’s inclusion in England’s squad long considered a formality, it was Dawson who assumed the role of ‘bolter’ as Joe Denly and David Willey saw their tournament dreams dashed.
National selector Ed Smith named England’s final 15 at Lord’s yesterday, with three changes from the preliminary group submitted last month.

Off-field transgressions forced Alex Hales’ removal and James Vince’s promotion, Archer’s impressive early outings on the international stage saw him leapfrog Willey, while Dawson was brought in from the cold in place of all-rounder Denly.

Denly, 33, had been included initially as a utility option, capable of stepping into any of the batting slots and as well offering a back-up leg-spin option. 

Recent evidence suggests he is not quite up to international standard as a bowler, though, and was used sparingly by captain Eoin Morgan during the recent Pakistan series.

Dawson has not featured since October, when he left the Sri Lanka tour with a side strain, but has impressed during Hampshire’s run to the One-Day Cup final and is considered a safer bet with the ball.

The balance was potentially tipped by Adil Rashid’s fitness, with Smith revealing the side’s premier spinner has a minor injury, placing a greater emphasis on having a reliable stand-in at hand.

“It was a very difficult situation we were in as a panel," Smith told BBC Sport. "We had more players than we were allowed. First of all, it’s a balance decision, it could go either way but secondly, Adil Rashid has a little shoulder niggle,”  “He’ll be fine, we hope he’ll play a full and complete part in the tournament, but it’s a factor in the Liam Dawson decision.

“You could say actually the strategic priority here is if one of those two main spinners is injured or if there’s a problem, we’ve got someone whose primary focus in his professional career has been his bowling.

And that’s the route we’ve gone down with Liam Dawson.”