Surrey opening batsman and captain Rory Burns, Kent batsman Joe Denly and Warwickshire paceman Olly Stone have all earned deserved call-ups to England's 16-man Test squad to tour Sri Lanka in November.
As well as the three new call-ups, Somerset left-arm spinner Jack Leach also gets a recall after the last playing in New Zealand. The squad will play two warm-up matches against an SLC Board President’s XI, before three Tests in Galle, Kandy, and Colombo.
Burns, Denly, and Stone Impress
The call-ups for the trio of Burns, Denly, and Stone illustrate that Ed Smith and selectors have been keeping a keen eye on the county circuit and have picked three in-form players who've consistently performed for their counties.
Surrey opener Rory Burns has passed 1,000 Championship runs for the past five seasons, having scored 1,319 championship runs at an average of over 69 this summer, making him the Division's highest run-getter. He is also the natural replacement for the retired Alastair Cook, who played his final Test at The Oval against India a few weeks ago. In addition to being the leading run scorer in Division One, Burns led Surrey to their first County Championship title since 2002, so he could provide key leadership qualities too.
For the 32-year-old Joe Denly, he might've thought his England days were now just a distant dream having last played for his national side in 2010 where he played nine ODI's and five IT20s.
The Kent batsman has played a key role in helping Kent secure promotion back into Division Two, and in addition to this handy leg spinners could provide another bowling option to Joe Root in the favourable sub-continent conditions. For some time England has struggled for a number three, so Denly could fill this void.
After receiving his first ODI call-up, Warwickshire's Olly Stone will provide pace and control to the England seam attack, and is widely regarded as one of the rising stars around the counties.
The 24-year-old has taken 37 wickets this season in the County Championship Division Two at an average of 12 and has helped all-but assure Warwickshire with a return to Division One.
Leach Returns and Jennings Keeps His Place
Somerset spinner Jack Leach returns to the squad after another successful season with Somerset and will provide back-up for Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid in the spin department.
Despite having a very poor series against India where his top score was only 42, Lancashire's Keaton Jennings has kept his place and is set to open with Burns. There's also a call-up for Surrey's Ollie Pope who some felt was harshly dropped and left out after just two Tests since making his debut, but having gone back to Surrey and helped them secure the Division Championship Title, he gets a deserved recall.
England will be looking to build on their 4-1 series win over India, and improve on a poor record away from home against the Sri Lankans.
The Full Squad:
Joe Root (Yorkshire) (cpt)
Moeen Ali (Worcestershire)
Jimmy Anderson (Lancashire)
Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire) (wkt)
Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire)
Rory Burns (Surrey)
Jos Buttler (Lancashire)
Sam Curran (Surrey)
Joe Denly (Kent)
Keaton Jennings (Lancashire)
Jack Leach (Somerset)
Ollie Pope (Surrey)
Adil Rashid (Yorkshire)
Ben Stokes (Durham)
Olly Stone (Warwickshire)
Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)
Tour Itinerary:
Two-day warm-up match, SLC Board President’s XI v England, 30-31 October 2018, NCC, Colombo
Two-day warm-up match, SLC Board President’s XI v England, 1-2 November 2018, CCC, Colombo
1st Test, Sri Lanka v England, 6-10 November 2018, Galle International Stadium, Galle
2nd Test, Sri Lanka v England, 14-18 November 2018, PKICS, Kandy
3rd Test, Sri Lanka v England, 23-27 November 2018, SSC, Colombo
