England add Sam Billings and Haseeb Hameed to Test squad for series against New Zealand
England have added Nottinghamshire batsman Haseeb Hameed and Kent wicket-keeper batter Sam Billings to the squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against New Zealand.
Hameed, who made his Test debut against India in 2016, will join the squad in London on Sunday after his County game against Warwickshire at Edgbaston. Billings, who is yet to make his debut in the longest format of the game, will look to establish himself as a red-ball cricketer for the first time in his career.
Haseeb Hameed has been rewarded for his brilliant run for Nottinghamshire in the ongoing County Championship. He has scored 474 runs at an average of 52.66. He will now have a chance to add to his tally of Test caps, which came during the tour of India in 2016.
Ben Foakes ruled out England's Test series against New Zealand
The call-ups come in the wake of England wicket-keeper Ben Foakes being ruled out of the series with a hamstring tear. The Sussex wicket-keeper batsman was injured during his team's County game against Middlesex at the Kia Oval.
Foakes will now be assessed by Surrey's medical team and is likely to remain out of action for at least three months. He was due to play his first Test match for England against the Kiwis. However, he will now have to wait longer to play in front of his home crowd.
The two-match Test series starts on June 2 (Wednesday) at Lord's before the action shifts to Edgbaston for the second and final Test, which will begin on June 10.
England's revised squad for two-match Test series against New Zealand
Joe Root (Yorkshire) Captain, James Anderson (Lancashire), James Bracey (Gloucestershire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Rory Burns (Surrey), Zak Crawley (Kent), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Jack Leach (Somerset), Craig Overton (Somerset), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Ollie Robinson (Sussex), Dom Sibley (Warwickshire), Olly Stone (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham), Haseeb Hameed (Nottinghamshire), Sam Billings (Kent)