Friday, February 2nd, 2018

Moeen Returns To England Duty For Odi Series Versus Black Caps

Moeen Ali will return to the England squad for the five-match ODI series against New Zealand.

The Worcestershire all-rounder has been rested for the forthcoming T20 Tri-Series involving England, New Zealand and Australia.

He helped England to a convincing 4-1 triumph in the ODI series in Australia before returning home for a short break.

But the 30-year-old has been named in a 15 man party to face the Black Caps in a series being played between February 25 and March 10.

Moeen had already been chosen in the squad for the two-Test series against New Zealand which follows the ODI encounters.

It is four years ago this month that Moeen made his England debut in an ODI Series in the West Indies when he opened alongside Michael Lumb.

Chairman of Selectors James Whitaker, said: “On behalf of the England selectors I’d like to congratulate head coach Trevor Bayliss and captain Eoin Morgan on their victory in the Gillette ODI series over Australia.

“Our ODI side has made excellent progress over the last three years and it’s encouraging to see with the 2019 World Cup on the horizon.

“We’re sure to encounter strong opposition in New Zealand but it’s another opportunity for the team to test themselves and to continue playing entertaining cricket.”


The England squad is:

Eoin Morgan (Middlesex) (Capt.)

Moeen Ali (Worcestershire)

Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire)

Sam Billings (Kent)

Jos Buttler (Lancashire)

Tom Curran (Surrey)

Alex Hales (Nottinghamshire)

Liam Plunkett (Yorkshire)

Adil Rashid (Yorkshire)

Joe Root (Yorkshire)

Jason Roy (Surrey)

Ben Stokes (Durham)

David Willey (Yorkshire)

Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)

Mark Wood (Durham)

*Ben Stokes’s involvement is subject to any court obligations in relation to the incident in Bristol in September and his travel arrangements are yet to be confirmed.


FIXTURES

1st ODI, Sunday February 25 v New Zealand, Seddon Park, Hamilton (2pm Local Time)

2nd ODI, Wednesday February 28 v New Zealand, Bay Oval, Tauranga (2pm Local Time)

3rd ODI, Saturday March 3 v New Zealand, Westpac Stadium, Wellington (2pm Local Time)

4th ODI, Wednesday March 7 v New Zealand, University of Otago Oval, Dunedin (11am Local Time)

5th ODI, Saturday March 10 v New Zealand, Hagley Oval, Christchurch (11am Local Time)