Billings in England IT20 squad

Kent vice-captain Sam Billings is in the England squad for IT20 Tri-series against Australia and New Zealand.

Durham seamer Mark Wood, Kent batsman Sam Billings and Hampshire’s James Vince return to the squad after missing out in the last IT20 against West Indies last September. Moeen Ali and Jonny Bairstow, who have played in every Ashes Test this winter and are part of the ODI squad against Australia, have been rested for the tournament.

England IT20 Squad
Eoin Morgan (c)
Sam Billings (wk)
Jos Buttler
Tom Curran
Liam Dawson
Alex Hales
Chris Jordan
Dawid Malan
Liam Plunkett
Adil Rashid
Joe Root
Jason Roy
Ben Stokes
James Vince
David Willey
Mark Wood

Chairman of Selectors James Whitaker said: “The IT20 Tri-Series will be very competitive against quality opposition in Australia and New Zealand. Our limited overs cricket has been progressing nicely across both formats so this tournament will be another indicator on where we are heading as a team over the long-term. Our aim is to become the best T20 side in the world and a strong performance in this series will give us the chance to progress up the team rankings.

“We felt with that it was important for Dawid Malan and Joe Root, who have had an intense period of Test cricket over the past few months, to play in the series and continue to develop their T20 experience and skills.”

FIXTURES
Prime Ministers XI v England – Friday February 2, Manuka Oval, Canberra (7.15pm Local Time)

Australia v England – Wednesday February 7, Blundstone Arena, Hobart (7.40pm Local Time)

Australia v England – Saturday February 10, MCG, Melbourne (7.20pm Local Time)

New Zealand v England – Tuesday February 13, Westpac Stadium, Wellington (7.00pm Local Time)

New Zealand v England – Sunday February 18, Seddon Park, Hamilton (7.00pm Local Time)

IT20 Final – Wednesday February 21, Eden Park, Auckland (7.00pm Local Time)