ENG vs AUS: Liam Livingstone issues colossal remark on being dropped by Rob Key: 'If I'm not involved...'

The 31-year-old England National Cricket Team batting all-rounder Liam Livingstone has issued a major statement after being dropped from the ODI team by the ECB managing director Rob Key.

England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) a few weeks back revealed squads for T20Is and ODIs against Australia with several new faces being given opportunities and the veterans being left out. A couple of England cricketers - Dawid Malan and Moeen Ali - even announced their retirements after being dropped by England.

Two major omissions from the ODI squad were Sam Curran and Liam Livingstone, who are regarded as superstar cricketers. Livingstone openly spoke about his removal from the ODI setup and revealed that it was Rob Key's decision to leave him out of the squad.

However, Liam Livingstone retained his position in the T20I team and was promoted to No.4 in the first game against Australia, where he top-scored with 37 runs in his bag and with the ball bagged 3 wickets.

Meanwhile, the 31-year-old has said that he is not aware of how to stage a comeback to the ODI team but made it clear that he won't cry about it as there are a lot more opportunities these days in cricket.

"I don't really know - that's one of my challenges. That's why I'm happy that I've got an opportunity to bat up the order [in the T20Is]. I feel like I've shown over the last couple of weeks, maybe a month, that the longer I get to bat in games, the more of a chance I have to affect games," Liam Livingstone said as quoted by ESPNCricinfo.

"I feel like I've done that in 50-over cricket as well: if you take away the World Cup, I feel like I'd done that further down the order. But it is what it is: I'm 31, I'm not going to sit here and cry about not being picked. There's plenty of cricket to be played around the world, and if I'm not involved in the ODI stuff then there's plenty more opportunities."

Unfortunately, I won't be playing in the ODIs but it's still not something I'm giving up on - Liam Livingstone

Also, Liam Livingstone has confirmed that he has not given up on the ODI comeback dream. He said:

"I want to play as much cricket for England as I possibly can. Unfortunately, I won't be playing in the ODIs but it's still not something I'm giving up on. I've had a difficult couple of years. My body has probably let me down a little bit, and maybe I haven't been up to scratch physically, with a couple of niggles here and there."

Liam Livingstone last featured in an ODI game for England on December 9, 2023, against West Indies at Bridgetown. Overall, he has scored 558 runs at an average of 29.36 and has bagged 17 wickets at an average of 30.76, an economy of 5.54, and a strike rate of 33.2 after playing 25 ODIs.

Meanwhile, the all-rounder further revealed that he is now fully fit after suffering a number of injuries in the recent past and is ready to contribute to the best of his abilities. He said:

"I can run around at 100 percent in the field and I can bowl and bat to the best of my ability, which is something I probably haven't been able to do for two-and-a-half years."

Also, Liam Livingstone after getting an assurance from the ECB of batting at No.4 in Australia T20Is, is aiming to make the most of it.

"It's up to me to make sure I try to do as well as I can and give them a bit of a headache for the next series. I don't think you'll see anybody that wants to bat lower down the order. I want that responsibility," he said.

"I want to try to win games of cricket for England, and the higher up the order, the more chance you have of doing that. There's less people that can play that role [at No. 6] and sometimes you've got to take it on the chin… [but] this is a chance for me to stake my claim," Liam Livingstone added.