England Lions cricket team
The England Lions (formerly England A) cricket team is a cricket team representing England and Wales. It is the "second-tier" of international English cricket below the full England cricket team, and is largely intended as a way for promising young cricketers to gain experience of playing international cricket. Although primarily intended as a touring team, for several years in the 1990s they played one match in England at the start of each season: between 1992 and 1995 against the previous season's county champion and in 1996 and 1997 against a Rest of England team. England A also played two List A games against the full Sri Lankan touring side in England in 1991.
Although an "England B" side had played one game against the Pakistanis in 1982 and had made a full tour of Sri Lanka in 1985/86, the first tour by a team named "England A" was to Zimbabwe in 1989/90, and consisted of three first-class matches and three 50-over games. On this occasion England A played against the full Zimbabwe side, but on subsequent tours their most important opponents have usually been the equivalent A teams of the countries they have been touring. However, England A has never played a match against their Australian counterparts.
They also often play matches against state or provincial sides, and in 2000/01 England A participated in the Busta Cup, the West Indian domestic first-class competition, finishing in third place out of the eight teams taking part. In 2003/04 England A took part in India's Duleep Trophy competition, but failed to progress beyond the group stages after losing both their matches. There were no England A matches played in the period between these two tours.
The newly rebranded England Lions was then integrated with the ECB National Academy, with touring parties taken from the Academy squad. On 15 June 2007, it was announced by the ECB (English & Welsh Cricket Board) the inaugural Lions side would play a one-day touring warm-up match against the West Indies at Worcester.[1] Later in the summer against the touring Indians the Lions drew a 3 day match at Chelmsford.[2] and had a one day match abandoned due to rain at Northampton.[3]
On 4 January 2008 the squad for the England Lions tour of India was named, with Sussex batsman Michael Yardy named as captain. The team competed in the 2008 Duleep Trophy domestic first-class competition in addition to friendly matches.[4]
[edit] Recent Call-ups
This lists all the players who have played for England in the past twelve months, the forms in which they have played and their most recent call-up. The captain of the side has varied from series to series, with Andrew Gale, James Hildreth and James Taylor captaining the side over the past year.
Players who have played international cricket for the main England side are noted with superscripts, whilst an asterisk (*) notes that they are a current member of that squad.
S/N = Shirt Number
| Name | Age | Batting Style | Bowling Style | County | S/N | Most Recent Call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Batsmen | ||||||
| Jimmy Adams | 31 | Left-handed bat | Left-arm medium | Hampshire | 50 | 2011 vs. Sri Lankans |
| Andrew Gale | 28 | Left-handed bat | Right-arm leg-break | Yorkshire | 44 | 2011 Regional 4-day Tournament in West Indies |
| Alex HalesT20* | 23 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium | Nottinghamshire | 35 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| James Hildreth | 27 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium-fast | Somerset | 56 | 2011 vs. Sri Lankans |
| Adam Lyth | 24 | Left-handed bat | Right-arm medium | Yorkshire | 58 | 2011 Regional 4-day Tournament in West Indies |
| Tom Maynard | 22 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm off-break | Surrey | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE | |
| Eoin MorganTest*,ODI*,T20* | 25 | Left-handed bat | Right-arm medium | Middlesex | 16 | 2011 vs. Sri Lankans |
| Chris Nash | 28 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm off break | Sussex | 36 | 2011 vs Sri Lanka A |
| Joe Root | 21 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm off break | Yorkshire | 61 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Jason Roy | 21 | Right-handed bat | Surrey | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE | ||
| James TaylorODI | 22 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm leg-break | Nottinghamshire | 38 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| James Vince | 20 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium-fast | Hampshire | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE | |
| Wicket-keepers | ||||||
| Jonathan BairstowODI*,T20* | 22 | Right-handed bat | — | Yorkshire | 51 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Jos ButtlerT20* | 21 | Right-handed bat | — | Somerset | 63 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Craig KieswetterODI*,T20* | 24 | Right-handed bat | — | Somerset | 22 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| All-rounders | ||||||
| Ravi BoparaTest*,ODI*,T20* | 26 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium | Essex | 42 | 2011 vs. Sri Lankans |
| Samit PatelODI*,T20* | 27 | Right-handed bat | Slow left-arm orthodox | Nottinghamshire | 29 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Adil RashidODI,T20 | 24 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm leg-break | Yorkshire | 95 | 2011 Regional 4-day Tournament in West Indies |
| Ben StokesODI,T20 | 20 | Left-handed bat | Right-arm medium | Durham | 59 | 2011 vs. Sri Lanka A |
| Chris WoakesODI,T20 | 22 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium-fast | Warwickshire | 31 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Pace bowlers | ||||||
| Nathan Buck | 20 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium-fast | Leicestershire | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE | |
| Jack Brooks | 27 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium-fast | Northamptonshire | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE | |
| Maurice Chambers | 24 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm fast | Essex | 55 | 2011 Regional 4-day Tournament in West Indies |
| Jade DernbachODI*,T20* | 25 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm fast-medium | Surrey | 46 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| James Harris | 21 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm medium-fast | Glamorgan | 39 | 2011 vs. Sri Lanka A |
| Steven FinnTest*,ODI*,T20* | 22 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm fast-medium | Middlesex | 25 | 2011 vs. Sri Lanka A |
| Stuart MeakerODI* | 23 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm fast | Surrey | 60 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Tymal Mills | 19 | Right-handed bat | Left-arm medium-fast | Essex | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE | |
| Graham OnionsTest*,ODI | 29 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm fast-medium | Durham | 90 | 2011 vs. Sri Lankans |
| Liam PlunkettTest,ODI,T20 | 26 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm fast-medium | Durham | 17 | 2011 Regional 4-day Tournament in West Indies |
| Boyd Rankin | 27 | Left-handed bat | Right-arm fast-medium | Warwickshire | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE | |
| Ajmal ShahzadTest,ODI,T20 | 26 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm fast-medium | Yorkshire | 13 | 2011 vs. Sri Lankans |
| Spin bowlers | ||||||
| Scott BorthwickODI*,T20* | 21 | Right-handed bat | Right-arm leg-break | Durham | 37 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Danny Briggs | 20 | Right-handed bat | Slow left-arm orthodox | Hampshire | 54 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
| Simon Kerrigan | 22 | Right-handed bat | Slow left-arm orthodox | Lancashire | 62 | 2011 tour of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka & UAE |
[edit] Season-by-season results summary
| England A matches | First-class v A team | Other first-class | List A v A team | Other List A | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Country | W | D | L | W | D | L | W | L | NR | W | L | NR |
| 1989/90 | Zimbabwe[5] | - | - | - | 1 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 1990/91 | Pakistan[6] | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sri Lanka | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | - | - | - | |
| 1991 | England | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1991/92 | West Indies | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 1992 | England | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1992/93 | Australia | - | - | - | 0 | 2 | 2 | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1993 | England | - | - | - | 0 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1993/94 | South Africa | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1994 | England | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1994/95 | India | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - |
| 1995 | England | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1995/96 | Pakistan | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 1996 | England | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1996/97 | Australia | - | - | - | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| 1997 | England | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1997/98 | Kenya[7] | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 1[8] |
| Sri Lanka | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 1998/99 | Zimbabwe | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0[8] | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1[8] |
| South Africa | - | - | - | 2 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| 1999/2000 | Bangladesh[9] | - | - | - | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| New Zealand | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2000/01 | West Indies | - | - | - | 3 | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 2003/04 | India | - | - | - | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2004/05 | Sri Lanka[10] | 1 | 0 | 1 | - | - | - | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2005/06 | West Indies | 0 | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | 2 | 3 | 0 | - | - | - |
| 2006/07 | Bangladesh | 1 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - |
| 2007 | West Indies | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 0 | 1[11] | 0 |
| India | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
[edit] Notes
- ^ "Solanki to lead England 'Lions'", 2007-06-15, BBC Sport. Retrieved on 2007-06-21.
- ^ "Strauss calls the tune", England and Wales Cricket Board.
- ^ "Deluge denies Lions", England and Wales Cricket Board.
- ^ "Yardy leads Lions in India", 2008-01-04, England and Wales Cricket Board. Retrieved on 2008-01-04.
- ^ England A played their three first-class matches against the full Zimbabwean side rather than the A team.
- ^ The tour was called off after two matches because of the start of the Gulf War.
- ^ All four matches were played against the full Kenyan side.
- ^ a b c One further match was abandoned without a ball being bowled.
- ^ All three matches were played against the full Bangladeshi side.
- ^ England took part in a triangular one-day tournament also involving Pakistan A. There were two games against Sri Lanka A (W1 L1) and two against Pakistan A (L2)7
- ^ Match played against the full West Indian side.
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