5 players who could be named in England’s Test squad for the first time against Sri Lanka
On September 21, England will name their Test squad for the series in Sri Lanka later this year. Some changes are inevitable in the side which won the Test series 4-1 against India.
Although the scoreline looks convincing on paper, it wasn’t the easiest series for England, and India certainly had their moments. England though had the best of the big moments, and stood up when it counted, particularly Sam Curran, who played a couple of brilliant innings.
Despite this, there will have to be some changes to the squad. Alastair Cook has retired from Test cricket, so for the first time in 159 Test matches, he won’t be part of England’s team. This will be a huge loss, not only because of his skills with the bat, but because of the experience and knowledge he brings to the team.
Keaton Jennings will be lucky to keep his place, after a torrid series against India. He may be helped however by the fact he is a better player of spin, so may be well suited to Sri Lankan conditions.
There are also questions about the top order, and whether England will try to bring someone with express pace into the squad.
Here are five men who could be called up for the Test squad for the first time.
#1 Rory Burns (Surrey)
It would be a massive surprise if Rory Burns goes unconsidered for a place in the squad. England are looking for at least one opener, and no one has been better in English domestic cricket over the last few years than Burns.
The Surrey batsman has scored at least 1000 runs in each of the last five seasons in the County Championship, and has an impressive first-class record, averaging just under 45 in his career.
He is an old-fashioned opener, very similar to Cook. He has the patience to leave the ball outside off stump, and has a solid technique. He is in the midst of yet another brilliant County Championship season, where he is comfortably the top scorer, having scored 1319 runs in 13 games, with four hundreds to his name.
He is 28, so you’d say he is at his peak, and it would be a bizarre decision if he is left out of the squad.