Sussex all-rounder James Coles has been called up to a senior England squad for the first time, having been named in their 17-player T20I squad to face India next month.
The 22-year-old has enjoyed a rapid rise to England contention over the last 12 months, and was the most expensive buy in The Hundred auction earlier this year, when he was bought for £390,000 by Southern Brave. A left-arm spinner, he has impressed for Sussex and on the franchise circuit, scoring a double-hundred in the County Championship in Sussex's most recent fixture, and playing in the SA20 for the first time earlier this year.
He is one of 17 players in the squad to face India, with Harry Brook set to captain in the first match on July 1, just 48 hours after the conclusion of the fifth day of the third Test against New Zealand. Brook, as well as Jofra Archer, Rehan Ahmed, Jacob Bethell, Jordan Cox, and Josh Tongue if selected, would have to travel from Trent Bridge to Chester-le-Street between the two fixtures.
England squad for India T20Is: (Harry Brook (c), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, Jos Buttler (wk), James Coles, Jordan Cox, Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Josh Tongue, Luke Wood
"We have selected a larger squad to accommodate for the fact that this series will begin shortly after the Test series against New Zealand is due to conclude which allows us to be flexible," read a statement from England national selector, Marcus North.
The packed scheduling echoes the end of last summer, when England's first ODI against South Africa took place two days after the Hundred final. Later this summer, players will be in action in the opening game of The Hundred on July 21, two days after the final match of the ODI series against India, while the final game of The Hundred and the first day of the first Test match against Pakistan are separated by three days.
England's squad for the India T20Is features many of the same players from their T20 World Cup defeat earlier this year. Ben Duckett, who was a member of the squad in Sri Lanka but didn't play, has been left out, while Jamie Overton and Brydon Carse are missing with injury. Of those who weren't inlcuded in the T20 World Cup squad, Baker, Coles, Cox and Saqib Mahmood have all been brought in.
The first match of the series will take place in Durham on July 1, with games in Manchester, Nottingham and Bristol before the series concludes in Southampton on July 11.
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