By Niall Hickman
Durham youngsters Jack Burnham and Adam Hickey are primed and ready to play their part in England’s one-day Under-19 series against Australia.
England have been boosted by the arrival of several new faces ahead of the start of the five-match series against Australia at South Northumberland CC in Gosforth on Tuesday.
Aneurin Donald made the long journey from Swansea yesterday after Glamorgan’s defeat in their LV County Championship game against Gloucestershire, to take over as captain from Lancashire’s Haseeb Hameed, who returns to the ranks after leading the team in last week’s drawn Youth Test.
England will also receive a large slab of local knowledge from two Durham youngsters who have been selected for the one-day series.
Adam Hickey, an off spinning all-rounder who has been in prolific form for Durham’s second team this summer and was set to make his first-team debut in the NatWest T20 Blast last month only for the match to be abandoned, is already with the squad.
He will be joined tonight by Jack Burnham, who has been given permission to miss the practice session at South Northumberland after scoring a half century on his senior debut on Sunday in Scarborough in Durham’s second innings against a Yorkshire attack including Liam Plunkett and Adil Rashid.
England welcome a third teenager straight from LV County Championship action in Saif Zaib, a left-handed all-rounder who made his debut in Northamptonshire’s win against Kent in Canterbury.
Hugh Bernard, a Kent seamer who played in the one-day series between the teams in Australia earlier in the year, returns to the squad alongside his county team-mate Ryan Davies.
George Garton, the left-arm seamer from Sussex who made a positive impression in England’s preparations for the Youth Test, has also been drafted into the squad to replace Sam Curran, who has become a first-team regular for Surrey in recent weeks.
Mason Crane, the Hampshire leg spinner who was also included in the 16-man squad England originally announced for the one-day series, is also unavailable for the first two matches of the series – which moves south to Chesterfield on Friday – after taking huge strides in recent weeks, including a five-wicket haul against Warwickshire at the weekend.
Crane is replaced in the squad by Matt Parkinson, the Lancashire leg spinner who took nine wickets in the Youth Test.
Brad Taylor, another Hampshire spinner who made his senior debut last summer, has recovered from the finger injury that ruled him out of contention for the Youth Test.
England have a doubt over Saqib Mahmood, the Lancashire seamer whose contribution in the four-day match was limited after he suffered a calf strain on the first day.
“We’re assessing Saqib day by day,” said England’s coach Andy Hurry. “But he has returned to bowling in practice so he is definitely in contention.
“We know from what we experienced in Australia that this is going to be a hugely competitive series. That makes it another fantastic opportunity for our boys to pit their skills against the best from Australia.”
After Friday’s second match in Chesterfield, the third game of the series is a day-night fixture at Derby which will be shown live on Sky Sports next Monday.
Game four is in Leicester before the series concludes on Saturday August 22 at Worcester – where Graeme Hick, Australia’s coach, should be assured of an especially warm welcome.
One interested spectator at tomorrow’s game will be Marcus North, the former Australia batsman who has settled in the North-East and is playing for South Northumberland this summer.
In his column in the Sunday Sun (http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/cricket/south-northumberland-game-important-part-9819860), North stressed the importance of these games for the next generation of Australia players.
“It’s great to see the club rewarded with another high-profile game after such a successful fixture between Durham and Warwickshire last year,” wrote North. “The facilities rival many county clubs, and with many taking matches outside their headquarters to promote the game to a broader audience, it would be realistic to see a Championship fixture there soon.
“The Ashes has shown why it’s so important for young Australians to learn to adapt to English conditions. Australia have not won a series in England since 2001 and this one has arguably been the worst by an Australian side for some time from a technical and mindset point of view. Cricket Australia will be focusing on sending their “A” and under-age teams to play as much cricket in the UK as possible to prepare for the next Ashes here in 2019.”
England squad v Australia
Aneurin Donald (Glamorgan, capt), Ryan Davies (Kent, wk), Hugh Bernard (Kent), Jack Burnham (Durham), Ben Green (Somerset), Haseeb Hameed (Lancashire), Adam Hickey (Durham), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Saqib Mahmood (Lancashire), Brad Taylor (Hampshire), Callum Taylor (Essex), Aaron Thomason (Warwickshire), Jared Warner (Yorkshire), Saif Zaib (Northamptonshire)