Ben Stokes and Mark Wood have been named in a 16-man squad for England’s Test series against Sri Lanka in March.
Both the Durham cricketers contributed heavily with both bat and ball for England in their previous test series against South Africa, as England claimed only their second overseas series win in four years and will look for more of the same when they get underway in Sri Lanka.
England National Cricket Selectors have named a strong squad for the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka starting at Galle International Stadium on March 19 2020.
Commenting on the selection of the squad, National Selector Ed Smith, said: “The selection panel has supported continuity after a successful series victory in South Africa.
“The South Africa tour marked the emergence of a very exciting group of young players, creating a nice balance with an experienced core of senior players. That squad is mostly retained, with some tweaks to the squad relevant to injury, rest and the challenges of playing in sub-continent conditions.
“Somerset spinner Jack Leach has recovered from his illness he picked up in South Africa and is now healthy and keen to resume his Test career.
“Jonny Bairstow has been in England squads across the three formats without a significant break. This two-Test tour presents a good opportunity for Jonny to be rested.
“Jimmy Anderson will continue to work with Lancashire and the ECB so that he is ready for the start of the County Championship season leading into the Test series against the West Indies in June.
“Moeen Ali is still unavailable for Test selection. The selectors are in consistent dialogue with Moeen and he remains a valued player in England cricket.”
The two-match Test series forms part of the ICC World Test Championship. Joe Root’s team currently stand in third place and will be looking to close in on India and Australia, who are currently leading the standings. The top two teams at the end of the two-year cycle will compete in the ICC World Test Championship Final in England in June 2021.
England Test squad:
Joe Root (Yorkshire) captain, Dominic Bess (Somerset), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Zak Crawley (Kent), Sam Curran (Surrey), Joe Denly (Kent), Ben Foakes (Surrey), Keaton Jennings (Lancashire), Jack Leach (Somerset), Matthew Parkinson (Lancashire), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Dominic Sibley (Warwickshire), Ben Stokes (Durham) vice-captain, Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham)
England Test tour of Sri Lanka 2020
Saturday 7-9 March: Three-day warm-up match v Cricket Sri Lanka Invitational XI, CMCG, Katunayake
Thursday 12-15 March: Four-day first-class match v Cricket Sri Lanka XI, P. Sara Ground, Colombo
Thursday 19-23 March: 1st Test v Sri Lanka, Galle International Stadium, Galle
Friday 27-31 March: 2nd Test v Sri Lanka, SSC, Colombo