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Jofra Archer’s rehabilitation from long-term injury will step up a notch next month when he joins up with the England Lions squad for their training camp in the UAE.
The pace bowler has not played any form of cricket since July 2021 and missed the English summer with a stress fracture of his lower back, having also suffered with a long-term elbow injury.
Archer’s protracted will travel for training alongside fellow bowlers Saqib Mahmood and Brydon Carse, who are also working back from injury, and five members of the Test squad who are not involved in the T20 World Cup – James Anderson, Jamie Overton, Ollie Robinson, Jack Leach and Will Jacks.
The teenage leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed has been called up as part of the 15-man squad that will travel to the UAE on 6 November, before taking on Ben Stokes’s senior England side in a three-day match that serves as a warm-up for the Test series in Pakistan.
Leicestershire prospect Ahmed, 18, has long been touted for international honours and ended the county season with a maiden five-for and a maiden century in the same match against Derbyshire. He netted with England’s limited-overs side at Old Trafford this summer, where he was treated to a one-on-one training session with Adil Rashid.
Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Matthew Potts and Matthew Fisher, all of whom have played Test cricket in 2022, are the highest profile names in the Lions squad. The Durham quick Potts was considered unlucky not to make the full Test squad after a highly impressive start to his England career – taking 20 wickets in five appearances – and has a chance to prove that decision was wrong when the two teams face off between 23-25 November.
His fellow seamer Fisher, who made his Test debut in Barbados in March, also has plenty to play for after missing the majority of the county season for Yorkshire with a stress fracture.
Hameed and Lawrence take their places among the batters, the former having been cut loose after a chastening Ashes last winter and the latter not seen since Brendon McCullum and Stokes took charge of the red-ball team.
Quick Guide
England Lions training group
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Tom Abell (Somerset), Rehan Ahmed (Leicestershire), Josh Bohannon (Lancashire), Jack Carson (Sussex), Sam Conners (Derbyshire), Sam Cook (Essex), Matthew Fisher (Yorkshire), Haseeb Hameed (Nottinghamshire), Tom Haines (Sussex), Jack Haynes (Worcestershire), Lyndon James (Nottinghamshire), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Liam Patterson-White (Nottinghamshire), Matthew Potts (Durham), Jamie Smith (Surrey)
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Pace bowler rehab
Jofra Archer (Sussex), Saqib Mahmood (Lancashire), Brydon Carse (Durham, 11-27 November).
Test player preparation
James Anderson (Lancashire, 6-19 November), Jamie Overton (Surrey, 6-19 November), Ollie Robinson (Sussex, 11-19 November), Jack Leach (Somerset, 11-19 November), Will Jacks (Surrey, 11-19 November).
Somerset captain Tom Abell and Lancashire batter Josh Bohannon are two of the more established domestic performers in the uncapped Lions list, while Essex paceman Sam Cook is rewarded for his consistent quality across the formats.
Jack Carson and Liam Patterson-White are included as spinners, which looks to be bad news for Dom Bess and Matt Parkinson, whose stock appears to have fallen. Sam Conners, Tom Haines, Jack Haynes, Lyndon James and Jamie Smith complete the group.
The ECB performance director, Mo Bobat, said: “It’s great to be able to recommence Lions developmental experiences and the camp in Dubai and Abu Dhabi represents a fantastic opportunity for a high potential group of players.
“Selection for the camp was conducted in close collaboration with both players and counties, and there are a number of players that have been encouraged and supported to take up other opportunities at home and overseas. The camp also supports the England Men’s team in their preparation for Pakistan, allowing England and Lions players to work closely together in overseas conditions.”
