England Lions on Thursday named a strong 14-member squad for the tour of Australia, starting in November.
The touring party will depart on November 4 along with the England Test specialists selected in the Ashes squad. As per England and Wales Cricket Board release, selection of players is subject to passing Lions minimum fitness standards, which will be administered over the coming weeks.
The squad includes four players- James Bracey, Mason Crane, Ben Foakes and Dom Sibley, who are capped at Test level.
Lancashire batter Josh Bohannon, Surrey wicketkeeper Jamie Smith and the Warwickshire pair of seamer Liam Norwell and opening batter Rob Yates are new to the Lions set-up.
The rest of the squad have had Lions experience in the past. Durham opener Alex Lees returns to the Lions for the first time in six years. The 28-year-old left-hander has been in excellent form in the County Championship and will be looking to make an impression on this tour.
The Lions will be in the camp alongside the England Ashes squad and will play two intra-squad matches in Queensland. They will also take on Australia A in a four-day match, for which the dates and venues are still yet to be confirmed. The party will return home on December 16.
Meanwhile, the captain of the side has not yet been announced while the coaching team will also be named in due course.
Lions squad to tour Australia
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Tom Abell (Somerset), Josh Bohannon (Lancashire), James Bracey (Gloucestershire), Brydon Carse (Durham), Mason Crane (Hampshire), Matthew Fisher (Yorkshire), Ben Foakes (Surrey), Alex Lees (Durham), Saqib Mahmood (Lancashire), Liam Norwell (Warwickshire), Matt Parkinson (Lancashire), Dom Sibley (Warwickshire), Jamie Smith (Surrey), Rob Yates (Warwickshire)