England have named their squad for the 2026 Men's U19 World Cup, with Thomas Rew set to captain the side in Zimbabwe.
Rew will captain the side after spending a short stint with Paarl Royals in the SA20. It was announced last month that the wicketkeeper-batter would join the squad as a short-term fill-in for the first part of the tournament. That stint falls in the middle of a busy winter for Rew, who was also part of England Lions' squad in Australia. He was one of a group from the Lions squad selected to form an opposition for England's warm-up match before the start of the Ashes, and scored a half-century during that game.
While Rew also captained the U19 side last summer against India, Farhan Ahmed – brother of England all-format all-rounder Rehan Ahmed – stood in as U19 captain during Rew's absence for their series in the Caribbean last month. England U19 suffered a 5-2 ODI series defeat to West Indies U19. Ahmed was England's leading wicket-taker in the series with 12 at 21.66, he also scored a half-century and an unbeaten 46. He has been named Rew's deputy for the World Cup.
England U19 World Cup squad
Thomas Rew (c), Farhan Ahmed (vc), Ralphie Albert, Ben Dawkins, Caleb Falconer, Ali Farooq, Alex French, Alex Green, Luke Hands, Manny Lumsden, Ben Mayes, James Minto, Isaac Mohammad, Joe Moores, Sebastian Morgan.
The only player in the squad who has not previously played for England U19s is left-arm spinner Ali Farooq, who has also yet to make his professional debut for Leicestershire. Ralphie Albert, who took a 10-for in a youth Test against India last summer, has been included, as has Durham quick James Minto.
England are in Group A of the World Cup, along with Pakistan, Scotland and Zimbabwe. They will play all of their group games in Zimbabwe starting on January 15.
Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.
