World Cup: Pacer Brydon Carse replaces injured Reece Topley in England squad

Reece Topley broke his left index finger during England's match against South Africa at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday and was subsequently ruled out for the remainder of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023.

Hyderabad: The International Cricket Council on Monday said that defending champions England have added inexperienced pacer Brydon Carse to their 15-member World Cup squad as a replacement player for injured fast bowler Reece Topley.

Reece Topley broke his left index finger during England's match against South Africa at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday and was subsequently ruled out for the remainder of the tournament.

The reigning champions decided to go for Brydon Carse after having resisted the urge to throw World Cup winner Jofra Archer a lifeline. As per the requirements, the inclusion of Carse to England's squad was approved by the tournament's Event Technical Committee.

In his nascent career, Brydon Carse has played just 12 ODIs for his country, but impressed with a five-wicket haul against Pakistan in July and subsequent performances at home against the Netherlands and New Zealand.

The struggling defending champions' next match at the ongoing World Cup is against Sri Lanka at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday and Carse could come into contention to feature as they look to stay in the race for a semi-final berth.

England are currently placed ninth in the 10-team table after losing three of their four matches. They play overwhelming favourites India in Lucknow on Sunday.