With the 5-match India Test series starting in less than a month, England have selected their big guns for the warm-up match between the Lions and India A. The likes of Alastair Cook, Dawid Malan, Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Dom Bess and Jack Leach have all been called up for the four-day match that will be held at New Road, Worcester on July 16.
The English domestic cricket season will now move into the T20 mode from August which means a chance to play red-ball cricket will be at a premium, which is why the ECB have picked a Test-heavy squad for the match against India A. The Test series begins on August 1.
While there are concerns about the fitness of James Anderson and Stuart Broad, Woakes is likely to use this game as a part of the rehab process for his right knee and the quad injury, along with another three-day second XI match for Warwickshire against Leicestershire that begins on July 10.
Broad said on social media that he had to resort to injections for his ankle ligament injury. The fast bowler said, "I've had some injections in my left ankle for an ongoing ligament problem after seeing brilliant specialists and having different scans. It needs 5 days rest then aiming to run Tuesday and build up quickly with an aim to play for Notts CCC against Surrey CCC 22nd July. That's the plan!"
Anderson on the other hand played for Lancashire second XI in a three-day game against Nottinghamshire on July 15 as part of his recovery process after his last piece of action came last month against Pakistan. Anderson, who is suffering from a long-standing shoulder problem, will play Yorkshire before the first Test against India.
All-rounder Ben Stokes has also been declared fit for the final T20I against India at Bristol after he scored an unbeaten 90 on Sunday while playing for the Durham Jets against Yorkshire Vikings.
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