James Anderson and Johny Bairstow have been included in the English side for the upcoming Test series against South Africa. The 17-member squad has been named today for the four-match Test series commencing with the boxing day Test.
Mark Wood who was battling a side injury has also been called to add strength to the pace attack. The board has given opportunities to Zak Crawley and Dominic Sibley who played at NewZealand in the recent Test series. Matthew Parkinson is expected to assist Jack Leach in spin-friendly conditions.
However, all-rounder, Moeen Ali hasn”t been considered for the series. His recent form wasn”t up to mark and the board isn”t so keen on his inclusion.
Other names included regulars such as Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Stokes, Broad, and Archer. During their last tour, the side registered a remarkable series victory. It was spoken to be one of the highs in the career of skipper Alastair Cook. The series is also remembered for Stokes” knock of 258. It was one of the whirlwind innings in 2016 and his brutality was exposed with this series.
The Proteas camp
On the other hand, the crisis still exists in the Proteas camp. The cricket board has been facing a plethora of problems and it has captured the headlines for a week. Meanwhile, it also lost its primary sponsor, Standard Bank.
England will also play a couple of practice games, one against South Africa Invitation XI and “A” teams respectively.
The home side will be looking forward to bring back its silver lining which has been missing for a long time. In the recent tour to India, the side wasn”t at its best and it will be interesting to see how things turn up?
England”s 17-man squad: Joe Root (captain), Jimmy Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Jack Leach, Matthew Parkinson, Ollie Pope, Dominic Sibley, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.