Taylor to captain England A, Flower is coach
The England Lions selectors have named a strong side, complete with a number of full internationals, for the series against Sri Lanka A and New Zealand A at home next month.
The England Lions selectors have named a strong side, complete with a number of full internationals, for the series against Sri Lanka A and New Zealand A at home next month.
The Lions will be captained by Nottinghamshire's James Taylor, himself a former England Test player, while the side will be coached by Andy Flower, who was the England coach as recently as early this year.
Aside from Taylor, the selectors have also called on paceman Steve Finn, in good form since his exit from England's set-up, as well as England keeper Jonny Bairstow, ODI all-rounder Ravi Bopara, and England T20 opener Alex Hales.
National Selector James Whitaker said: "With the Royal London One-Day International series against India rapidly approaching and next winter's tour to Sri Lanka and ICC Cricket World Cup also firmly in our sights, this is the perfect opportunity for these players to impress the selectors in the 50-over format of the game.
"We are delighted to welcome Ravi Patel from Middlesex into a Lions squad for the first time and look forward to what promises to be a closely contested series against two highly competitive touring sides."
England Lions squad:
James Taylor (Nottinghamshire) captain<br>Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire)<br>Ravi Bopara (Essex)<br>Steven Finn (Middlesex)<br>Stephen Parry (Lancashire)<br>Harry Gurney (Nottinghamshire)<br>Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire)<br>Craig Overton (Somerset)<br>Jason Roy (Surrey)<br>Ravi Patel (Middlesex)<br>Tom Smith (Lancashire)<br>James Vince (Hampshire)<br>David Willey (Northamptonshire)
Coach: Andy Flower
Triangular Series schedule:
Tuesday August 5: New Zealand 'A' v Sri Lanka 'A' – Taunton<br>Wednesday August 6: England Lions v Sri Lanka 'A' – Taunton<br>Friday August 8: England Lions v New Zealand 'A' – Bristol<br>Saturday August 9: New Zealand 'A' v Sri Lanka 'A' – Bristol<br>Monday August 11: England Lions v Sri Lanka 'A' – Worcester<br>Tuesday August 12: England Lions v New Zealand 'A' – Worcester
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