Jamie Overton returns to England Test squad for first time in three years
It remains to be seen whether the all-rounder will be fully fit to take the field at Headingley on June 20, having broken the little finger on his right hand during the recent ODIs against West Indies, but he has been given every chance to prove his fitness.
The England and Wales Cricket Board has said the 31-year-old will be 'assessed and reviewed daily' by its medical team, who have already ruled Overton's Surrey team-mate Gus Atkinson out of the match.
Atkinson tweaked his hamstring in the recent Test against Zimbabwe and has not been passed fit for the trip to Leeds.
In his absence, England have further bolstered their pace bowling stocks with comebacks for fit-again pair Woakes and Carse. Both men missed the early part of the season with injury problems of their own, ruling them out of the opening Test of the summer.
Woakes, who faces the tourists with England Lions in Northampton over the next four days, could edge out Sam Cook, who retains his place after a quiet debut against Zimbabwe.
Carse, meanwhile, is in line for his first home cap after impressing over the winter in Pakistan and New Zealand.
A thornier selection dilemma concerns Bethell, the 21-year-old rising star who is back from IPL duty and placing pressure on the top three.
Chris Woakes returns to the Test squad (John Walton/PA)
Bethell confirmed his status as an outstanding prospect with a highly-accomplished series against the West Indies and has already shown an aptitude for the cut and thrust of the Test arena on the New Zealand tour.
Vice-captain Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley were both thought to be under pressure from his reintroduction but the pair reeled off matching hundreds against Zimbabwe and received glowing praise from skipper Ben Stokes in the aftermath.
Stokes had earlier been equally effusive about Bethell but clarified that his endorsement only guaranteed a return to the squad, not the side.
That is a decision that must now be taken as England ponder how to balance their options against an India side in a renewal phase following the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
England squad for first Test against India: B Stokes (c), S Bashir, J Bethell, H Brook, B Carse, S Cook, Z Crawley, B Duckett, J Overton, O Pope, J Root, J Smith (wkt), J Tongue, C Woakes.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
3 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Bottoms up! Dreary weather no match for Epsom's winning women on Ladies Day as racegoers celebrate their winnings in style
Glamorous racegoers descended on Surrey for Epsom Ladies' Day - and they certainly didn't disappoint. Donning an entire rainbow of bright colours, revellers braced a wet start and light rain for the opening day of two-day festival, which includes the Coronation Day and the Oaks. As the races began and the sun came out, revellers wasted no time in getting the booze out - and getting the party started by popping champagne and sipping on pints. The ensembles on display at Epsom Downs Racecourse for the Derby Festival were as daring as ever, with low-scooped corset style tops on display alongside daring thigh splits. Others dressed for the occasion with bright and vibrant fascinators, oozing glitz in a bid to be crowned best dressed. Friday's events commenced at 1.30pm, with the Betfred Oaks at 4pm. The final sprint took place just after 5pm - with Marvin Humes providing DJ entertainment for revellers for the rest of the evening. Ladies Day features the third Classic race of the season, The Betfred Oaks. This highly-anticipated race day is also a chance for racegoers to showcase their style, with colourful dresses, wide-brimmed hats and fancy fascinators. The website calls Ladies' Day 'a spectacular, gleeful celebratory day where people come together to join in racing's most spectacular carnival'. While all eyes are on the runners and riders of the day, the competition also provides the opportunity for the ladies attending to fight it out for who is best dressed on the other side of the fence. Epsom organisers describe the Derby, due to take place at 3.30pm tomorrow, as the 'world's greatest flat race'. With an incredible prize pot of £1.5million, the race lasts one-and-a-half miles. The owner normally receives about 75 per cent of a race's prize money, while the remaining 25 per cent is generally split between the trainer (10 per cent), the jockey (10 per cent) and then the final 5 per cent to stable staff and racing charities. However, the Derby has been issued with a yellow weather warning, with the Met Office predicting thunderstorms and hail could hit the track. Racegoers show the anticipation on their faces as the race gets underway For the past two years, the winning jockey was Ryan Moore for trainer Aidan O'Brien - however horses can only win it once. In the past, the event has been attended by a flurry of royals, including the likes of Queen Elizabeth II, King Charles, and Queen Camilla in attendance. Held at Epsom Downs Racecourse in Surrey, the Derby was first run in 1780. It is Britain's richest flat horse race, and the most prestigious of the five Classics - the other four of which are the 2,000 Guineas Stakes, the 1,000 Guineas Stakes, the Epsom Oaks, and the St Leger Stakes. Last year, King Charles attended Ladies' Day to watch the Betfred Oaks, and his horse Treasure, bred by the late Queen, finish in 11th place. Others opted for a more traditional style, creating a bright display Donning an entire rainbow of bright colours, revellers braced a wet start and light rain for the opening day of the weekend The hats were as vibrant as ever, as one racegoer opted for bright shades of pink A pair of glamorous friends arrived in bright spirits as the day commenced No rain on my parade! One racegoer opted for a bright yellow ensemble with sparkling silver shoes Temperatures today at Epsom are set to remain around 15 degrees, but revellers should start to see some sun when the races kick off this afternoon Friday's events are set to commence at 1.30pm, with the Betfred Oaks at 4pm However, others chose to play it safe with the weather, adding a stylish blazer Newlywed Georgia Toffolo was dressed to the nines in a brown spotty blouse and elegant white skirt Among the celebrity arrivals were Gabby and Kenny Logan Revellers changed into their finery, carrying flat shoes for the partying ahead Racegoers caught the giggles as they posed for photographs Ladies Day features the third Classic race of the season, The Betfred Oaks Attendees glammed up with Gucci accessorises and gold jewellery Harry Redknapp during Ladies Day of the Betfred Derby Festival at Epsom Downs Racecourse Though the rain appeared to have eased off, racegoers still held onto their hats amid the wind By contrast, Cheltenham Racing Festival, which takes place in March, has taken the decision to rename 'Ladies' Day' as 'Style Wednesday' to encourage both men and women to take part in the fashion competition. The Jockey Club, which runs 15 courses across the UK, also ditched the Best Dressed competition. Instead, the day now includes the Slow Fashion awards, open to both men and women, which 'celebrates vintage and borrowed items, as well as investment pieces'. A spokesperson for Cheltenham Racecourse said last year: 'This year we re-launched day two of The Festival as Style Wednesday to celebrate "fast horses, slow fashion", encouraging racegoers to make more sustainable fashion choices, showcasing their unique and personal style, and to share the stories behind their amazing outfits with friends, family and on social media. 'This includes re-wearing outfits they already have in their wardrobes, purchasing timeless garments to wear again and again and also buying from retailers specialising in pre-loved clothing.'
The Sun
4 hours ago
- The Sun
England football ace Millie Bright leaves fiancé & falls for married personal trainer ‘in a big way'
ENGLAND football ace Millie Bright has left her fiancé and fallen for a married personal trainer. The Lionesses defender, 31, pulled out of Euro 2025 this week — stating she was unable to 'give 100 per cent mentally or physically'. 4 4 We can reveal she has split from husband-to-be Levi Crew and grown close to a fitness instructor. It is understood he has now left his wife and is living at Chelsea captain Millie's luxury house. There is no suggestion either of them cheated on their partners. Pals said Millie — who won Euro 2022 and led England to the World Cup final in 2023 — met the trainer last year after starting to work out at a gym in Redhill, Surrey. Sources say she later struck up a friendship with the married dad, who we are not identifying. Earlier this year she split from Levi, and the trainer broke up with his wife 'out of the blue'. A source told The Sun: ' Millie's shock withdrawal from the England squad ahead of Euro 2025 left fans open-mouthed. 'She has always loved playing for her country, and spoke of her pride in doing so.' They went on: 'She has fallen for this guy in a big way, and that has come with some big sacrifices. "The fall-out has been enormous, but Millie has fallen hook, line and sinker for her ideal man.' Other sources close to Millie stressed her withdrawal was based purely on her need for an operation to fix a long-term injury. Millie and Levi shared a home in Surrey and their families were close. In December 2023, she announced their engagement on social media, flashing her diamond ring on holiday in Mauritius. She has referred to Levi as her 'king' who was with her 'through thick and thin'. She even has a tattoo of his eye on her arm which has been shown prominently in official squad photos. But fans noticed she had removed any mention of him from her social media accounts and deleted the engagement post. Millie has undergone minor knee surgery after a stellar season with Chelsea, winning the treble and finishing unbeaten domestically. She said pulling out of the upcoming Euros in Switzerland 'was not an easy decision', adding: 'I just don't feel 100 per cent mentally or physically in a position to go on and compete in a tournament.' She aimed to 'get myself back in tip-top condition and just happy again, I think, all round, just feeling like myself'. England's first game is against much-fancied France on July 5. Last night a spokesman for Millie declined to comment. 4
The Guardian
6 hours ago
- The Guardian
Old-tech Bashir is trying something wild and brave amid the battle for Bethell
Bruised skies, sun through clouds, dualism, life in death. Welcome to the bloom of another England Test Match summer, the summer, this time around, of Bethell and Bashir. But of Bethell first because he's the easy bit. The battle for Jacob Bethell is of course just beginning. Everyone wants a piece of England's most thrillingly talented young cricketer. The broadcasters are frothing. The papers want to know whose shirts he wears. Actually the papers don't really care. Maybe the Daily Telegraph wants to know this at a push. But Bethell is still kind of perfect right now, a future-bomb, all promise and new things, in a sport that is always desperate for these. Even the words 'Jacob Bethell' sound hopeful, the name of a wise young hobbit or a courtly medieval blacksmith. The look is good: Matt Dillon eyes, jaw, shoulders, bleach blond hair for the white ball months, but now puritanically dark for the Tests because he knows where his off stump is and Respects The Game. This is the wider promise of Bethell. He seems to express some idea of order, a chance to make sense of a deeply confusing cricketing world, out there standing on a hill in Tatooine, twin suns sinking behind him, bringing balance to the force. The fact Bethell is yet to score any kind of hundred is key to this. Ideally he will never score a hundred, because while this feels hot, progressive, titillating, it is also totally fine because of the shapes and the orthodox mechanics. Bethell has the modern sex-stuff, the slogs and the dinks. He also has check drives and a perfectly aligned defence. He left the ball a lot in New Zealand and people got husky and brave and pretended to have things in their throat. In this context having Bethell in England's Test match top five feels like a weapon of reactionary consensus. The logic goes: I like Jacob Bethell, and therefore I also understand and feel comfortable with modernity and new things. You might worry that this image of Jacob Bethell is conjured out of need, a way of making rock and roll acceptable to the squares, like a record company has manufactured a fake punk band with a lead singer called Dave Dangerous, who actually do good old-fashioned tunes you can hum along to. Of course you like Jacob Bethell grandad. But can you handle a jazzed-up 14-year-old who plays the kung fu uppercut to every ball? Can you handle an impact No 8 and left-arm filth-master called Yooskens Van De Wild (answer: no)? The point is, we have a golden hobbit with a high elbow. And maybe the world is still good. There is no sense of blame here. No one should feel bad about being unable to navigate this state of format-confusion, because cricket is basically an insane landscape now, dying but furiously alive, stocked with talent but criss-crossed with illusory pathways. Virat Kohli wins the IPL then rages about the primacy of Tests. People in England and Australia still prefer the dying stuff, no matter how hard the hard-sell. Even writing a newspaper column about Test cricket feels a bit subversive. Fine, but will anyone notice it on the internet? (Answer: yes but make sure you get Matt Dillon in high up for the SEO.) And by now even the cross-format Player Of Hope is probably an illusion. The best versions, Kohli, AB de Villiers, David Warner, tended to come from that generation where you still had time to learn hard technique then expand from there. Whereas these days the world is a deeply confusing place for a talented young cricketer. Jake Fraser-McGurk, for example, came grooving on to the scene looking like a hoverboard pilot, all shape, hands, mullet, talent, but averages 14 since last year's IPL and has now taken a step back to try and remember what cricket actually is. The most recent Unity Player for England, Jofra Archer, was ruined by having to bowl 42 pointless overs in one innings in New Zealand and is now basically a collection of broken china wheeled out on to the field on a trolley every six months. It seems likely Bethell will be able to exist across this world because he is just pure, fluid, fungible talent. For now it is probably more interesting to talk about Shoaib Bashir, who was also picked in England's first Test squad this week, who is also 21 years old, and who is the exact opposite of Bethell, the opposite of the unity player, a mono-format, old-tech red-ball bowler, out there plonking away on his harpsichord and just hoping somebody wants to listen. Can he have a future too? Sign up to The Spin Subscribe to our cricket newsletter for our writers' thoughts on the biggest stories and a review of the week's action after newsletter promotion There are plenty of cricket watchers who won't approve of the Bashir selection. He hasn't earned it on hard county numbers. It feels very Baz, very boys club. Bashir was picked initially off a social media clip, picked on release point, height, arms. Do England even need a spinner? And is Bashir good enough if they do? Answering this must be balanced against lousy county figures, against 50 Test wickets, the fact at his best he gets both dip and rip, the fact Stokes actually seems to enjoy captaining him and understand how to do it. But the idea he is some favoured princeling also doesn't really stand up. Bashir ground his way up through the Surrey age groups, hard-working, totally focused, but basically out of of time because Surrey didn't have any real interest in orthodox right-arm spin. He didn't take the message, didn't go away, took every trial he could. And now he's out there engaged in one of the strangest of Test careers, proving himself at England level to earn the step down to county cricket, with no parachute or pathway, just the current summer and if he's lucky an Ashes gig where he might well end up a cautionary anecdote or a youtube clip with laughter emojis next to it. There is a kind of category mistake here. Franchise cricket will tell you it's the opposite of the old, safe grind. In reality that life is its own kind of treadmill, a blur of colour, noise, content, flown from one bubble to the next, a comfort zone of junk cricket, fireworks on top of fireworks. Bethell can play in this world as long as he chooses now. Opportunities will thrust themselves into his hands. But Bashir is the real freelancer here, a cricketer struggling to bloom in a living, dying major sport, for whom every ball matters, every off-break this summer a referendum on his own future. It is by far the more perilous of these two paths. Do or die, in a thing that we're told is dying. It feels like actual, high-jeopardy sport. Either way the Test grounds will be full again in June and July. Jacob Bethell under bruised skies scratching his way to 17 in two hours against a rampant Jasprit Bumrah: this is basically the sporting summer, a perfect little square of light, a sense of old stuff working, like noticing that bees still exist. But perhaps there might still be a place too for specialists, for twin codes, for an off-spinner who gives it a straight rip, who provides a note of quietly artful variation, who could no longer have a career once Stokes retires; but who is also doing something a little wild and brave out there, walking the finest of lines, and whose fate is in many ways the more gripping.
