England announce squad for South Africa Tests, Jacob Bethell returns
What's the story
England have announced their 15-member squad for the upcoming three-match Test series against South Africa. The tour will be the first under new head coach Stephen Fleming. The team, captained by Joe Root, sees the return of Jacob Bethell after a knee injury. However, Shoaib Bashir has been dropped from the squad in favor of uncapped left-arm spinner Liam Patterson-White. However, the former has been included in the England Lions' red-ball squad.
New inclusion
Patterson-White rewarded for impressive season
Patterson-White's selection comes after an impressive County Championship season, where he was the top wicket-taker among spinners in Division One with 42 wickets at an average of 25.11.
The 28-year-old has taken 184 wickets in First-Class cricket across 75 matches at an average of 33.40. He also has 2,409 runs, including three tons.
His consistent all-round performance has made him a valuable addition to the squad for this tour.
Takeaways
Other key selections
As mentioned, Bethell returns to the Test setup after recovering from the knee injury that ruled him out of the Test series against Pakistan at home.
Bethell's last appearance was the Lord's ODI against India in July, where he scored a vital 91 and took 1/49.
Ollie Pope, who was part of the squad for Pakistan Tests but didn't play, has also been left out this time around.
Pre-tour preparations
Preparatory camp details ahead of the tour
Ahead of the tour, six players not part of the white-ball series against Australia will join the Lions for a preparatory camp in Pietermaritzburg on November 25.
These include Sam Cook, Emilio Gay, Dan Lawrence, Patterson-White, Ollie Robinson, and Jamie Smith.
Meanwhile, five other players - Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Ben Duckett, and Root - will return to the UK immediately after Australia's ODIs before heading to South Africa on December 2.
Warm-up game
Squa and schedule
Squad: Joe Root (captain), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Sam Cook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Dan Lawrence, Liam Patterson-White, Ollie Robinson, Jamie Smith, and Josh Tongue.
Before the three Tests start on December 17, England will play a warm-up match against CSA XI in Durban from December 9.
Johannesburg, Centurion, and Cape Town will host the three games.