England Name 16-Man Squad To Take On Pakistan

England Name 16-Man Squad To Take On Pakistan

L-R: Chris Tremlett, Tim Bresnan and Eoin Morgan have made successful comebacks from injury and are included in England's Test squad

©REUTERS / Action Images

England have named a 16-man Test squad to play Pakistan in a three-match series in the United Arab Emirates in January and February, welcoming back a number of players who have missed recent series due to injury or being rested.

James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Eoin Morgan, Matthew Prior and Chris Tremlett are all set to be back in action while Ravi Bopara, Steven Davies and Monty Panesar are picked for the squad.

"This is an important series given it is our first Test series since hosting India in August this year and we expect a stern challenge against a Pakistan side that will be accustomed to playing in the UAE," National Selector Geoff Miller commented.

"We believe we've selected a very strong squad with a number of key players looking to return from injury including the likes of Stuart Broad, Eoin Morgan and Chris Tremlett.

"All three have missed a significant period of cricket recently but continue to make excellent progress and will be looking forward to having a substantial impact during this series. To have three world-class players of their calibre returning to the squad is an enormous boost for the Test team.
 
"This series sees Steven Davies once again deputise as wicketkeeper to Matt Prior while Monty Panesar, who has been playing cricket in Sydney recently, has been selected as the second spin option along with Graeme Swann.

"Monty's selection comes off the back of a strong domestic season with Sussex and with the potentially spin-friendly conditions of Dubai and Abu Dhabi in mind.
 
"Ravi Bopara has another opportunity to show his growth as a Test player and we believe he will continue to add depth to our batting stocks for what promises to be a highly competitive series."

The series begins with the opening Test in Dubai starting on 17th January, the second Test starts in Abu Dhabi on 25th January before the two teams return to Dubai for the final match on 3rd February.

England will then play four One-Day Internationals and three Twenty20 Internationals before returning home.

England Test squad: Andrew Strauss (captain), James Anderson, Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Alastair Cook, Steven Davies, Steven Finn, Eoin Morgan, Monty Panesar, Kevin Pietersen, Matthew Prior, Graeme Swann, Chris Tremlett, Jonathan Trott

© Cricket World 2011