The England selectors today named a 16-man Test squad and 15-man ODI and T20 squads to face Pakistan in the UAE this autumn, including Middlesex's Steven Finn in the Test & ODI squads and Eoin Morgan, who captains the ODI and T20 squads.
Nottinghamshire opener Alex Hales has been included in the Test squad for the first time and there is also a place for the uncapped Surrey left-arm spinner Zafar Ansari, one of three spin bowling all-rounders alongside Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid.
Hales’ county colleague James Taylor, who won his last Test cap against South Africa in 2012, has also been included in the Test squad as well as the One-Day International squad.
Another left-arm spinner, Lancashire’s Stephen Parry, has been recalled to the T20 International squad which also features Sussex paceman Chris Jordan, now fully recovered from the side injury which ruled him out of international contention mid-way through the season.
Commenting on the squad, National Selector James Whitaker said: “We would like to congratulate Alastair Cook, Eoin Morgan, Trevor Bayliss and Paul Farbrace on the excellent results they have achieved this summer across all three different formats. We are particularly pleased with the way in which a host of new, young players have swiftly adapted to international cricket and made their mark on the England team in such style.
“The challenge we face against Pakistan will be very different and the composition of our squads reflects the conditions we expect to encounter in the UAE. Zafar Ansari’s potential excites us and he will provide strong competition for Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali in the Test squad after enjoying an excellent domestic season with both bat and ball for Surrey.
“Alex Hales has scored heavily for Nottinghamshire in First Class cricket this season, has shown he can play match-winning innings for England in white ball cricket and fully deserves an opportunity to compete for a place at the top of the order in our Test side.
“In line with our recent decision to rest Joe Root for the Royal London One-Day Series against Australia, we have opted not to include Ben Stokes in our One-Day or T20 International squads.
“Ben has been an outstanding performer for England this summer and this decision reflects a desire to manage his workload across a busy winter period in all three formats of the game. He will come back into contention for the white-ball format when we consider the make-up of our squads for the tour of South Africa later in the year.“
ECB also announced today that the former England One-Day captain Paul Collingwood and the former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene will both join the England management team in consultancy roles at different stages of the winter.
Collingwood, who led England to World T20 success in the Caribbean in 2010 and more recently coached Scotland in the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup, will work with England’s limited overs squads in the UAE and during next year’s World T20 tournament.
Jayawardene, who retired from international cricket earlier this year after an 18-year career which saw him play 149 Test Matches and 449 One-Day Internationals, will act as a batting consultant to the Test squad for the first part of England’s tour to UAE, taking in the warm-up period and the 1st Test Match against Pakistan.
ECB’s Director, England Cricket, Andrew Strauss said: “We are delighted that Mahela and Paul will be joining the England management team, supporting our existing specialist coaches in this area. Both will bring a vast wealth of cricketing knowledge and expertise to the team, and in Mahela’s case, extensive experience of batting in the sub-continent which will be invaluable as part of our wider preparations for the UAE tour.”
The squads in full:
England Test squad
Alastair Cook (Essex) captain
Moeen Ali (Worcestershire)
James Anderson (Lancashire)
Zafar Ansari (Surrey)
Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire)
Ian Bell (Warwickshire)
Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire)
Jos Buttler (Lancashire)
Steven Finn (Middlesex)
Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire)
Liam Plunkett (Yorkshire)
Adil Rashid (Yorkshire)
Joe Root (Yorkshire)
Ben Stokes (Durham)
James Taylor (Nottinghamshire)
Mark Wood (Durham)
One-Day International squad
Eoin Morgan (Middlesex) captain
Moeen Ali (Worcestershire)
Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire)
Sam Billings (Kent)
Jos Buttler (Lancashire)
Steven Finn (Middlesex)
Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire)
Adil Rashid (Yorkshire)
Joe Root (Yorkshire)
Jason Roy (Surrey)
James Taylor (Nottinghamshire)
Reece Topley (Essex)
David Willey (Northamptonshire)
Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)
Mark Wood (Durham)
T20 International Squad
Eoin Morgan (Middlesex) captain
Moeen Ali (Worcestershire)
Sam Billings (Kent)
Jos Buttler (Lancashire)
Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire)
Chris Jordan (Sussex)
Stephen Parry (Lancashire)
Adil Rashid (Yorkshire)
Joe Root (Yorkshire)
Jason Roy (Surrey)
Reece Topley (Essex)
James Vince (Hampshire)
David Willey (Northamptonshire)
Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)
Mark Wood (Durham)
Pakistan v England in UAE 2015 – tour itinerary:
30 September England team arrive
5-6 October Two-day game vs Pakistan A Sharjah CC
8-9 October Two-day game vs Pakistan A Sharjah CC
13-17 October 1st Test ZCS, Abu Dhabi
22-26 October 2nd Test Dubai Cricket Stadium
1-5 November 3rd Test Sharjah CC
8 November One-day practice match ZCS, Abu Dhabi
11 November 1st ODI D/N ZCS, Abu Dhabi
13 November 2nd ODI D/N ZCS, Abu Dhabi
17 November 3rd ODI D/N Sharjah CC
20 November 4th ODI D/N Dubai Cricket Stadium
23 November T20 v UAE XI (f) ZCS, Abu Dhabi
26 November 1st IT20 (f) Dubai Cricket Stadium
27 November 2nd IT20 (f) Dubai Cricket Stadium
30 November 3rd IT20 (f) Sharjah CC
1 December England depart UAE
