England cricket superstar and Test captain Ben Stokes is set to join the England Lions as a part of the exciting coaching staff led by former international Andrew Flintoff. Along with Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali will also join Flintoff and Co. The pair will join the England Lions ahead of the white-ball series against Pakistan Shaheen in Abu Dhabi next month.
The series will address the England and Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB) new strategy to take forward English cricket. Keeping an eye on modern cricket, where there is a growing interest in limited overs cricket, the English Cricket Board has taken a new path to take its national cricket team on a new path.
England Lions will play limited overs match after 3 years
The limited overs series against Pakistan Shaheens will be the first for England Lions in the last three years, as cricket in England was mostly dependent on county cricket and domestic tournaments. The T20 series will be the Lions’ first since the end of 2018, and they have not played a 50-over match since the tour of Sri Lanka in early 2023.
England cricket stars like Ben Stokes and Ali will be part of the coaching team for the upcoming tour. England’s Test team captain Stokes will continue his recovery process with the Lions. The fast bowling all-rounder suffered a back injury while bowling in the fifth Ashes Test in Sydney earlier this month.
Moeen Ali will also join the Ben Stokes-starrer coaching set-up
On a previous occasion, Ben Stokes gained experience working with Flintoff in a ‘mentor’ role for Northern Superchargers in The Hundred this summer. This will be the second time that Ben Stokes will be working with the legend as a member of the coaching staff. On the other hand, Moeen Ali, who has retired from professional cricket, has reversed his decision to join Yorkshire for the T20 Blast and will remain with the England Lions squad to continue his transition from a cricketer to a coach.
Ali aspires to become a coach after his cricket career. Along with Stokes and Ali, Flintoff will be supported by Neil McKenzie, Sarah Taylor, Neil Killeen, Amar Rashid and Troy Cooley. For the series against Pakistan Shaheen, the ECB confirmed its full squad for the ODIs and T20Is in Abu Dhabi.
England Lions squad for series against Pakistan Shaheen
T20 squad: Sonny Baker, Luke Benkenstein, James Coles, Sam Cook, Jordan Cox (captain), Scott Currie, Kelvin Harrison, Eddie Jack, Saqib Mahmood, Ben McKinney, Tom Moores, Dan Mousley, Matt Revis, Will Smeed, Nathan Sauter, Mitchell Stanley and Asa Tribe.
50-over squad: Sonny Baker, Luke Benkenstein, James Coles, Sam Cook, Scott Currie, Kelvin Harrison, Eddie Jack, Ben McKinney, Dan Mousley (c), Liam Patterson-White, Matthew Potts, Matt Revis, James Reve, Mitchell Stanley, Asa Tribe, James Wharton.
England Lions vs Pakistan Shaheens Full Fixtures:
England Lions vs Pakistan Shaheen 3 Match T20 Series:
1st T20I- 20 February,
Second T20 match- 22 February
Third T20 match- 24 February
England Lions vs Pakistan Shaheens 5 Match ODI Series:
First ODI- 27 February
Second ODI- March 1
Third ODI – March 4
Fourth ODI- 6 March
5th ODI- 9 March
(All matches will be held at Sheikh Zayed Cricket Stadium, Abu Dhabi).
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