England vs India: ECB announces squad for first two Tests, Haseeb Hameed returns

England Cricket Board (ECB) has named a 17-man squad for the upcoming five-Test series against India, starting from August 4 in Nottingham. Haseeb Hameed, who had an impressive county season of late, has been included in the side, having last played for England in the whites during India’s tour of 2016. He was named a cover alongside Sam Billings for England’s home series against New Zealand recently. However, he did not feature in either of the two encounters.

Further, the squad has Ollie Robinson, who was set clear for international return upon the completion of ECB probe into historic offensive tweets that resurfaced during his debut Test against New Zealand in Lord’s in early June. After an impressive debut, where he bagged 7 wickets and scored 42 with the bat, Robinson was suspended from international cricket immediately pending ECB disciplinary committee’s inquiry, following which he took an indefinite break from Sussex too. However, with all falling into place, he would want to add more to his solitary Test cap.

Stokes, Bairstow, Buttler return

The squad notes the return of Ben Stokes, who recently led England to a 3-0 ODI win against Pakistan after three players of the setup tested Covid-19 positive. Stokes missed action ever since he broke his thumb during the currently-suspended edition of the Indian Premier League, while his last Test appearance dates back to the away series in India during February-March 2021.

Apart from Stokes, the other returnees are Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler and Sam Curran, all of whom were rested after the IPL 2021 for the New Zealand series. Both James Anderson and Stuart Broad have included, while Jack Leach and Dom Bess are the two spinners.

Meanwhile, neither Jofra Archer nor Chris Woakes has been named owing to injuries. Archer has been out of action due to issues in his elbow, while Woakes, who recently was a part of the limited-overs team for the ODIs and T20Is against Sri Lanka at home, has been sidelined due to a heel injury.

England Squad for first two Tests: Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Dom Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Dom Sibley, Ben Stokes, Mark Wood.