England name 16-member squad for T20I series against Sri Lanka

England Men’s head coach Chris Silverwood named a 16-member squad for the T20I series against Sri Lanka, set to go underway from June 23 at Cardiff. Chris Woakes, David Willey and Liam Dawson mark their return into the squad, while two stars in Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer continue to remain out of contention due to injury.

Apart from Stokes and Archer, Reece Topley, who was a part of the series against India earlier this year, also missed out due to a side strain. Woakes and Willey last played for England in the shortest format in 2015 and 2019 respectively, while Dawson returns into T20Is straight after 2018.

We have announced our squad for the Men’s Vitality IT20 series against Sri Lanka! ?

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) June 12, 2021

England are set to face Sri Lanka for three T20Is, the first two scheduled to be played at Cardiff on back-to-back days (June 23 and 24), followed by the final game at Southampton on June 26. The two teams will then meet for as many ODIs at Chester-Le-Street, the Oval and Bristol between June 29 and July 4.

I want our team to play an attacking form of the game: Chris Silverwood

“With the T20 World Cup only a few months away, this summer is about perfecting our team and continue to progress on the field. We want to approach every series with an influx of players aiming to win every match and giving us the best preparation as we get closer to the tournament,” England Men’s Head Coach, Chris Silverwood, said.

“With several high-profile players missing through injury, it allows me to look at some of our experienced players who have not featured at this level for some time. The likes of Chris Woakes and David Willey are very experienced cricketers, and to have them both in the mix is exciting and shows the depth of squad we have available. I want our team to play an attacking form of the game. I hope we can continue to excite the England fans with our approach,” he added.

England squad: Eoin Morgan (C), Moeen Ali, Jonathan Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler (WK), Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Liam Dawson, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, David Willey, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood