The players participating in the ongoing Indian Premier League will be back in time for the T20I series against Pakistan.
England on Tuesday named their T20 World Cup 2024 squad with pacer Jofra Archer marking his return to international cricket for the first time in a year.
Archer was recovering from an elbow injury that sidelined him for nearly 12 months.
The Jos Buttler-led unit are the defending T20 World Cup champions.
Left-arm spinning all-rounder Tom Hartley is the sole uncapped player in the squad.
England squad for T20 World Cup 2024
Jos Buttler (c), Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jonathan Bairstow, Harry Brook, Sam Curran, Ben Duckett, Tom Hartley, Will Jacks, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone, Adil Rashid, Phil Salt, Reece Topley, Mark Wood
The same squad will feature in the four-match T20I series against Pakistan, which will begin on May 22.
The players participating in the ongoing Indian Premier League will be back in time for the T20I series against Pakistan.
All teams have until May 25 to make changes to their squad, after which any alteration will require approval from ICC’s Event Technical Committee.
England will depart for the Caribbean on May 31 with their first match against Scotland in Barbados on June 4. They are slotted in Group B alongside Australia, Namibia, Scotland and Oman.
It is worth mentioning that 20 qualifying teams are divided into four groups of five, from which the top two teams of every group will make their way to the Super 8 round. In that stage, qualifying teams will once again be divided into two groups of four, from which the top two teams will make their way to the semi-final and then the winners will play the final on June 29.
Groups for T20 World Cup 2024
Group A: India, Pakistan, Ireland, Canada, United States
Group B: England, Australia, Namibia, Scotland, Oman
Group C: New Zealand, West Indies, Afghanistan, Uganda, Papua New Guinea
Group D: South Africa, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Netherlands, Nepal
Won World Cup With India, Former Coach Gary Kirsten Explains Decision To Join Pakistan
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) made a significant move on Sunday as they announced the appointment of World Cup-winning Gary Kirsten as their head coach for ODIs and T20Is, while former Australian pacer Jason Gillespie will take over that role in Test cricket. Kirsten has had successful stints with India and South Africa before, with his 2011 OD World Cup triumph with the MS Dhoni-led side arguably being the highlight. Along with them, former Pakistan all-rounder Azhar Mahmood was appointed as the assistant coach of the team across the formats.
Speaking of his decision to coach the Pakistan team, Kirsten said that his primary aim remains to unite the Pakistan white-ball team.
“It’s a tremendous honour to be entrusted with the responsibility of coaching the Pakistan men’s national team in white-ball cricket and to rejoin the international cricket arena after some time. I eagerly anticipate this opportunity and aim to contribute positively to the Pakistan men’s national team in limited-overs cricket. Kirsten’s strategy focuses on prioritizing continuity in team selections, aiming to create a stable and consistent environment that allows players to perform at their best. He believes that maintaining a cohesive unit and building strong team dynamics are essential for the team’s success in international competitions.
“One of the beautiful aspects of cricket is its universality. Across cultures, there’s a shared understanding when we discuss the game. My goal is to unite the Pakistan men’s white-ball team, harnessing their considerable talents towards a common objective, and achieving success together on the field,” he said.
Kirsten, who is currently the mentor of IPL side Gujarat Titans, is expected to take over from Pakistan’s tour of England from May 22.
Read More: Captain Babar Azam & team officials meet Mohsin Naqvi
Pakistan will play four T20Is and from there the team will travel for the T20 World Cup in June.
Pakistan have been on the search for a full-time head coach since the end of the 50-over World Cup last year where they failed to enter the knockout stages.
After their shambolic effort in the marquee event held in India, Pakistan had sacked the entire set of coaching staff – head coach Grant Bradburn, team director Mickey Arthur, bowling coach Morne Morkel and batting coach Andrew Puttick.
Premier batter Babar Azam was also removed from captaincy post the ICC showpiece with Pakistan opting to appoint pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi as their white-ball leader and Shan Masood doing that duty in Tests.
Along with that, Pakistan had also turned to former cricketer Muhammad Hafeez for the guiding role during their tour to Australia.
But Hafeez lost the job after Pakistan lost 0-3 in the Test series and 1-4 in the T20Is.
While Masood was retained as Test captain, Afridi was relieved from leadership and Babar was reinstated in the last week of March.
However, Pakistan could not find a full-time head coach despite them approaching some top names such Matthew Hayden and Shane Watson.
Eventually, they zeroed in on Kirsten, who had led India to the World Cup triumph in 2011, and Gillespie, who comes with a bagful of coaching experience with English county side Sussex.
