England's World Cup defense has witnessed a major boost as red-ball skipper Ben Stokes has come out of ODI retirement to help the Jos Buttler-led side retain the title in India this year. The England Men's selection panel has announced the squads for the forthcoming white-ball series against the Black Caps starting August 30 and it marks the widely rumored and eagerly-awaited return of Stokes who had called time on his ODI career after playing at the Chester-le-Street versus South Africa on July 19, 2022.
The selection panel has included three uncapped players in Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue and John Turner for the four-match T20I series, with the opener to be played at Chester-le-Street on August 30.
Reflecting on Stokes' return, England Men's National Selector Luke Wright mentioned that the red-ball skipper brings his leadership skills and his match-winning ability on board and it is something that every cricket fan would love to enjoy. Wright feels that the white-ball series against New Zealand will be an evenly contested one and help the home side in preparing well leading into the marquee 50-overs tournament.
"We have been able to name two extremely strong squads that underline the depth of talent we enjoy in white-ball cricket. The return of Ben Stokes only adds to that quality with his match-winning ability and leadership. I am certain that every fan will enjoy seeing him back in an England ODI shirt again," said Wright as reported by ECB.
"We’re also excited to give first international call-ups to both Gus Atkinson and John Turner while Josh Tongue has deserved a place in the T20 squad after impressing during the Ashes. Any series against New Zealand is closely fought and will provide us with an ideal opportunity to test ourselves against one of the best teams in the world," he concluded.
England's ODI squad:
Jos Buttler (c), Moeen Ali, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, David Willey, Mark Wood, Chris Woakes
England's T20I squad:
Jos Buttler (c), Rehan Ahmed, Moeen Ali, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Liam Livingstone , Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Josh Tongue, John Turner, Luke Wood
England vs New Zealand – T20I Series schedule
1st T20I: Riverside, Chester-le-Street - 30 August
2nd T20I: Old Trafford, Manchester - 1 September
3rd T20I: Edgbaston, Birmingham - 3 September
4th T20I: Trent Bridge, Nottingham - 5 September
England vs New Zealand – One-Day Series schedule
1st ODI: Sophia Gardens, Cardiff – 8 September
2nd ODI: The Ageas Bowl, Southampton – 10 September
3rd ODI: The Oval, London - 13 September
4th ODI: Lord’s, London - 15 September
