England appoint Tim Southee Specialist Skills Consultant ahead of India series
With the India series coming up next month, the England cricket team on Thursday appointed former New Zealand pacer Tim Southee as a Specialist Skills Consultant till the conclusion of the five-match Test series. The tour will start with the first Test at Leeds on June 20, and the tour will conclude with the July 31-August 4 fifth Test at the Oval.
'With his vast experience of playing in a wide range of conditions around the world and across all formats, he brings valuable insight and knowledge to the players. Following his consultancy stint, he will resume playing duties in The Hundred for Birmingham Phoenix,' the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said in a statement. 'Following his consultancy stint, he will resume playing duties in The Hundred for Birmingham Phoenix,' it added.
Last year, Southee announced his retirement and finished his career with 391 wickets in 203 innings, and has also contributed with the bat over time. He has seven half centuries to his name, highest being 77*, and in his last match, equalled Chris Gayle in his tally of 98 sixes.
Our new Specialist Skills Consultant 😍
We're delighted to announce that Tim Southee, New Zealand's all-time leading wicket-taker, is joining us on a short-term basis.
Read more 👇
— England Cricket (@englandcricket) May 15, 2025
The right-arm seamer who made his international debut in 2008 holds the distinction of being the only pacer to play 100 matches in each of the three formats. Southee is also the only bowler to bag 300 Test, 200 ODI and 100 T20I wickets.
Before retiring, Southee had relinquished his Test captaincy before New Zealand whitewashed India 3-0 at home under Tom Latham. He featured in four ODI World Cups, seven T20I World Cups, two Champions Trophy events. Southee was integral to New Zealand's WTC final triumph in the inaugural edition in 2021 over India, picking five wickets in the summit clash.
The Kiwi will link up with the squad ahead of England's opening fixture of the international season, a one-off Test against Zimbabwe that gets underway at Trent Bridge next Thursday.
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