Online Reporter
Zimpapers Sports Hub
THE England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), on Friday announced a strong 13-man squad for their historic one-off four-day Test match against Zimbabwe, scheduled to take place at Trent Bridge in Nottingham later this month.
The England squad will be captained by Ben Stokes, who is set to play his first competitive match of the year after tearing his left hamstring for the second time in six months during England’s final Test in New Zealand.
Following surgery in January, Stokes has undergone an intense rehabilitation programme and is reportedly in peak physical condition.
While the all-rounder has resumed bowling, there is a possibility he will initially feature as a specialist batter, gradually returning to full all-round duties ahead of the India series.
The squad also includes seasoned players Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope.
England have also called up Essex’s uncapped duo, Sam Cook and Jordan Cox, while Josh Tongue returns to the squad for the first time in two years.
In the absence of the injured Mark Wood, the pace attack will be spearheaded by Gus Atkinson and Matthew Potts, who have 11 and 10 Test caps respectively. Shoaib Bashir, with 15 caps, is the most experienced specialist bowler in the team.
The squad will assemble in London over the weekend of 10 May, with head coach Brendon McCullum arriving from New Zealand. The team will then proceed to Loughborough for a training camp, expected to include players outside the main squad, such as Brydon Carse, before taking a short break ahead of the Test match week, when they will regroup in Nottingham.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani has emerged as the biggest winner from the Chevrons’ recently concluded two-match Test series against Bangladesh, following the latest update to the ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings.
The towering pacer claimed nine wickets in a Player of the Match performance that helped Zimbabwe clinch an impressive three-wicket victory over Bangladesh in the first Test in Sylhet.
Muzarabani’s performance earned him a career-best 705 rating points, making him only the second Zimbabwean bowler to surpass the 700-point mark in Test cricket history.
The 28-year-old climbed four places to 15th on the Test bowling rankings, with India seamer Jasprit Bumrah retaining his top position.
His teammate, Wellington Masakadza, re-entered the rankings in joint 68th place after taking five wickets in his first Test appearance in over two years. There was also good news for Bangladesh, as experienced spinner Mehidy Hasan rose four places to 26th after claiming 10 wickets in the same match.
England Squad for Zimbabwe Test:
Ben Stokes (capt), Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Sam Cook, Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue
