England selections bittersweet for Notts

By Dave Bracegirdle

Nottinghamshire will provide a third of England’s ICC World Cup t20 squad, with Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, Samit Patel, Alex Hales and Michael Lumb all included in the 15-man party for next month’s tournament in Sri Lanka.

Broad, Swann and Lumb will travel as defending champions, having played in the 2010 final against Australia in Barbados. Lumb was a Hampshire player at the time but Notts did also have Ryan Sidebottom in that England team.

Patel’s inclusion is a welcome relief to him, after he narrowly missed out on a late call-up to the last 50-over World Cup. “I’m thrilled to bits to be in a squad for a major tournament,” he said. “Broady, Swanny and Lumby have been there before and Alex Hales comes into it having shown that he’s a massive talent.”

“Having five Notts players in a 15-man England squad shows the strength in depth that Mick Newell has put together here at Trent Bridge,” added Patel. “Other teams will be gunning for us as the title holders but if we play as well as we can then we should be right up there.”

While proudly reflecting on the call-ups of so many of his players, Mick Newell, the Nottinghamshire director of cricket, is now left with something of a selection headache for the remainder of the LV= County Championship campaign.

With the county’s final three Championship matches running parallel to the NatWest Series against South Africa and then the three-match t20 series, Notts will now be without Broad, Swann and Patel for the remainder of the season and only have Lumb and Hales available for the next match, against Warwickshire at Edgbaston.

"We always take great pride when a Nottinghamshire player is selected for England because it is a fair reflection on how well they have done for us," said Newell. "We always expected to have four players involved and Michael Lumb's selection is no major surprise given the quality he has shown in domestic cricket this season. England want to have a left-handed option at the top of the order and he is a very clean striker of the ball."

James Taylor, who has featured in the last two Investec Test matches against South Africa, missed out on selection for both the ODI and the t20 squads, so will be available for his county’s remaining fixtures.



Date: 21/08/2012 13:45:32 by Dave Bracegirdle
In: Nottinghamshire | England |