England Lions likely to have a big name join them for the second game against India 'A'
England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on Wednesday named Rocky Flintoff, son of former all-rounder Andrew Flintoff, in the England Lions squad for the red-ball series against India ‘A’ beginning on May 30.
The squad also featured the name of 2019 ODI World Cup winner Chris Woakes who has been out of action since December last year due to an ankle injury.
Somerset keeper-batter James Rew will lead the England Lions in the two four-day games Canterbury and Northampton.
Test captain Ben Stokes could be named as the 15th player to the 14-man squad depending on his performance in the four-day Test against Zimbabwe from May 22-25.
England Lions will face off against India ‘A’ led by Abhimanyu Easwaran in the first four-day game from May 30 to June 2.
The second match will be played from June 6 to 9 which will be followed by India ‘A’ intra-squad match from June 13 to 16.
Woakes has been England’s premier pace-bowling all-rounder options besides Stokes. He last featured in the second Test between England and New Zealand in Wellington in December last year.
The 36-year-old has played 57 Tests and claimed 181 wickets at an average of 28.24 and averages 26.26 with the bat. Woakes has scored 1,970 runs from 92 innings which include a hundred and seven fifties.
England Lions squad also features spin-bowling brothers Rehan and Farhan Ahmed. Rehan, a leg-spinner, made history as the youngest Test debutant for England at the age of 18 years in 2022. His younger sibling Farhan, 17, is an off-spinner and plays for Nottinghamshire in the County Championship.
ALSO READ:
Wicketkeeper-batter Jordan Cox suffered an abdominal injury and has been ruled out of the first game of the series. ECB’s statement confirmed that the 24-year-old will be back for second game in Northampton. Cox will miss the Test against Zimbabwe and also the Canterbury game against India ‘A’.
Rocky, son of Andrew Flintoff, had recently been called up to the Lions’ squad for the tours of South Africa and Australia. He impressed against CA XI at the Gabba in January with a hundred.
James Rew(C/WK), Farhan Ahmed, Rehan Ahmed, Sonny Baker, Jordan Cox, Rocky Flintoff, Emilio Gay, Tom Haines, George Hill, Josh Hull, Eddie Jack, Ben McKinney, Dan Mousley, Ajeet Singh Dale, Chris Woakes
For more updates, follow CricXtasy on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, and YouTube.
