Gareth Batty named in England Test squad in a spin-bowling quartet for their Bangladesh tour
England recall Batty for Bangladesh tour
England have selected four spin-bowlers in their 17-man squad for their upcoming Test tour of Bangladesh, including 38-year-old off-spinner Gareth Batty, who has been plucked from the Test wilderness.
Batty has been recalled after a more than 11-year absence from England’s Test side, with the uncapped Zafar Ansari, last year’s Adelaide Strikers star Adil Rashid and incumbent tweaker Moeen Ali making up the spin-quartet.
Following the withdrawal of Test opener Alex Hales, 19-year-old batsman Haseeb Hameed and run-machine Ben Duckett have both been included in the Test squad after impressive county seasons.
Wicketkeeper Jos Buttler, who has been named stand-in captain for the ODI leg of the tour after limited-overs captain Eoin Morgan joined Hales in pulling out of the tour, has also been named in the Test squad, having last played in the longest format for England in 2015.
Seamer Mark Wood, whose northern summer has been curtailed by injury, has been named in both the Test and ODI squads.
England and Wales Cricket Board national selector James Whitaker said picking four slow-bowlers will ensure Test captain Alastair Cook will have plenty of variety at his disposal.
“Selecting four spinners for the Test matches will give the coaches and captain plenty of options," Whitaker said in an ECB statement.
“Alongside Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid, we are excited about the qualities that Zafar Ansari and Gareth Batty bring to the squad.
“Zafar has great potential both with bat and ball and Gareth’s experience as one of the country’s best slow bowlers and his ability to be effective in subcontinent conditions will be beneficial this winter.”
Star batsman Joe Root will be rested for the three-match ODI series before returning for the two Tests, while Cook will travel to Bangladesh a week ahead of the Test party before returning home for the birth of his second child.
Cook will miss the two red-ball warm-up matches before returning to Bangladesh to lead the team in the first Test in Chittagong on October 20.
Whittaker said they expect a tough challenge from Bangladesh in their home conditions.
“After a summer of progress at home across all formats, we can expect another test of our credentials this autumn," he said.
“The challenge we face will be very different and the structure of our squads reflects the conditions we expect to encounter in Bangladesh.
The ECB also announced that former ODI skipper Paul Collingwood will join the England coaching staff during the 50-over series.
For the Test series, Ottis Gibson will replace Paul Farbrace as head coach Trevor Bayliss’ assistant.
England Test squad:
Alastair Cook (captain), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Zafar Ansari, Jonny Bairstow, Gary Ballance, Gareth Batty, Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, Ben Duckett, Steven Finn, Haseeb Hameed, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.
ODI squad:
Jos Buttler (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jake Ball, Sam Billings, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Liam Plunkett, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, James Vince, David Willey , Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.
England tour of Bangladesh dates:
7 October: 1st ODI, Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Dhaka
9 October: 2nd ODI, Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Dhaka
12 October: 3rd ODI, Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chittagong
20 October: 1st Test, Zohur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chittagong
28 October: 2nd Test, Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, Dhaka