England Cricket has announced a new 18-member squad for their Royal London ODI series against Pakistan. This was done on the back of the latest covid-19 outbreak, this time in the English squadron. Three players and four staff members tested positive ahead of their clash against Pakistan.

The squad is filled with a lot of newcomers as expected, since most of the senior players were put into isolation. The series will mark the return of Ben Stokes to the side. He has been appointed as the captain of the squad. Also head coach, Chris Silverwood, will be back after having taken a break from the national side.

We have named a new 18-strong group for the Royal London Series against Pakistan.

— England Cricket (@englandcricket) July 6, 2021

Dawid Malan, who exited from the bio-bubble for the Sri Lankan series due to personal reasons, is part of the squad. Another player who was out of favor, James Vince, also makes a comeback. He last played an ODI for England on August 4, 2020, against Ireland. Notably, there were several uncapped players who received a call-up viz. Brydon Carse, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Phil Salt and John Simpson.

England’s new squad for the Pakistan series: Ben Stokes (c), Jake Ball, Danny Briggs, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Lewis Gregory, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Dan Lawrence, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Matt Parkinson, David Payne, Phil Salt, John Simpson, James Vince

“We’re in unprecedented territory” – Ashley Giles

England and Wales Cricket Board’s managing director Ashley Giles was excited about the prospect of introducing the new players. They all deserve a chance owing to their domestic performance, according to Giles.

“It’s a great opportunity to play on the biggest stage, and for most of the players selected it’s not necessarily something they would have been expecting 24 hours ago. It’s an exciting group of players, with some young talent and some players who have impressed at a domestic level over a long period of time,” he said.

Giles was happy with the swift measures taken by the management during tough times. He was also optimistic about Ben Stokes‘ first ODI venture as a captain.

“We’re in unprecedented territory, in terms of replacing an entire squad and management team, and I’m very proud of how everyone has come together in order to get it done. Ben hasn’t captained our ODI side before so it’s a huge honor for him. We all wish him well and it’s a role I’m sure he’ll thrive in. I’d like to also put on record the thanks of the ECB to the PCB for their support and understanding during this time.”

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