ENG vs PAK: White-ball regulars return as England name 16-man T20I squad
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on Wednesday announced that captain Eoin Morgan will return to the national team along with the white-ball regulars for the T20I series against Pakistan. Ahead of the ODI series against the same opposition, there was an outbreak of COVID-19 in the England camp, due to which all the players had to serve in quarantine.
Having finished their isolation periods, all the players will now be back on the field. Morgan and Jos Buttler were deemed as close contacts after it was revealed that three players and four support staff of the team which was picked for the Pakistan ODIs were tested positive with COVID-19. A revised squad was announced, which ended up whitewashing Pakistan 3-0.
Ben Stokes was made the skipper of that squad, but has been rested for the T20Is and would go back to Durham in order to be ready for the Hundred and the upcoming Test series against India. Top performers from the ODI series like Lewis Gregory, Jake Ball, Saqib Mahmood, and Matt Parkinson have made it to the 16-member squad for the T20I series.
We have rewarded some of the players involved in the 50-over series win: Chris Silverwood
Some of the notable players who are missing from the T20I squad that played against Sri Lanka are Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Mark Wood, Liam Dawson and Sam Billings. Apart from this, it was also reported that head coach Chris Silverwood has been given a break. For this series, former England skipper Paul Collingwood has been handed over the responsibility as the head coach.
Silverwood expressed his happiness of watching the second-string England side winning the series 3-0 against Pakistan. “The Royal London Series success against Pakistan showcased the exciting depth of talent we have developed in men’s white-ball cricket,” Silverwood was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.
“We have selected a T20 squad that sees the return of many of our most experienced players after their period of isolation. Additionally, we have rewarded some of the players involved in the 50-over series win with selection which allows us to manage multi-format players as we prepare for the much-anticipated Test series against India,” he added.
The first T20I of the match will be played at Trent Bridge in Nottingham on July 16. The action will shift to Headingley in Leeds for the second T20I on July 18. After that, the series finale will be played at Old Trafford in Manchester on July 20.
England T20I Squad vs Pakistan: Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Tom Banton, Jos Buttler, Tom Curran, Lewis Gregory, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Matt Parkinson, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, David Willey
