Uncapped all-rounder James Coles was on Monday named in England’s 17-member T20I squad to take on the three-time world champions, India, in a five-match series starting next month.
Skipper Harry Brook will face a quick turnaround if the third and final Test against New Zealand lasts its duration, with the contest set to be played at Nottingham from June 25-29. England host Shreyas Iyer-led India for five T20Is, with the opening match set to be played at Chester-le-Street on July 1.
The ECB had earlier moved the start time of those matches in the T20I series, which were set to be played under lights, ahead by an hour to ensure more TV viewership. The first, third and fourth T20Is will thus start at 10:00 pm IST, while the second and fifth will be played at 7:00 pm IST.
The England squad is largely similar to the one that took on India in the semifinal of the T20 World Cup in March this year.
The second T20I will be played on July 4 at Manchester, while the third will be at Nottingham on July 7. The fourth and the fifth T20Is will be played at Bristol and Southampton on July 9 and 11, respectively.
Former Australia batter and England men’s incumbent national selector Marcus North said, “James Coles is an exciting addition and has earned his place following his performances with the England Lions and in T20 competitions here and abroad during the past 12 months. We have selected a larger squad to accommodate 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,” North added.
**Squad:** Harry Brook (c), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, Jos Buttler (wk), Phil Salt (wk), James Coles, Jordan Cox (wk), Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid, Josh Tongue, Luke Wood.