England Name Squad for South Africa Series

Stokes and Archer rested for ODIs

Ben Stokes England World Cup 2019

England have named their squad for the white-ball series in South Africa.

Ben Stokes will return for his country after being called into the T20 squad. It will be his first action for England since leaving to support his ill father.

“Ben is an exceptional competitor; a winner and someone who gives to the team,” said National selector Ed Smith.

However, Stokes will not play in the ODI series against the Proteas. He will be rested for the one-day matches along with pace bowler Jofra Archer and all-rounder Sam Curran.

That trio will only play T20 games after recent stints in the Indian Premier League. That is despite the ODIs counting towards qualification for the 2023 World Cup in India.

The series will begin with three T20Is in Cape Town and Paarl from November 27 to December 1. The follow three ODIs run from December 4-9.

Banton Only Makes Reserves

Eoin Morgan will lead both white-ball sides after playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. Worcestershire's Moeen Ali, who was Morgan's vice-captain over the summer, also makes both squads.

However, there is no place in either squad for batsman Tom Banton, who only makes the reserve list. Seamers Jake Ball, who shone for T20 Blast winners Nottinghamshire, and Middlesex's Tom Helm join Banton in the reserves.

Lancashire batsman Liam Livingstone and Somerset all-rounder Lewis Gregory will also be hoping for a chance in the 50-over games.

“There are several players who play every format for England, we are just very mindful of the amount of cricket we've got coming,” added Smith.

“We want them to be at their best when they're playing for England and that will mean taking some opportunities to rest from cricket.”

England could play both Sri Lanka and India at the start of 2021 should those series get confirmed.

England Squads for South Africa

Twenty20 squad: Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonathan Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Chris Jordan, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, Reece Topley, Mark Wood.

One-day squad: Eoin Morgan (captain), Moeen Ali, Jonathan Bairstow, Sam Billings, Jos Buttler, Tom Curran, Lewis Gregory, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Jason Roy, Olly Stone, Reece Topley, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood.

Reserves across both formats: Jake Ball, Tom Banton, Tom Helm.

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Chris is passionate about all forms of cricket and loves writing about the sport. He has a background in both sport and news journalism and has written cricket and other sports content for several years now. Chris has written about all levels of the game from regional club cricket in England to the international stage. He now brings that experience to the iGaming industry where he combines it with his love of betting. Chris loves to bet on many different sports, but particularly enjoys seeking out the best value bets on offer and passing that on through his coverage.