England have selected 20-year-old left-arm pacer Josh Hull for their final home Test of the season against Sri Lanka as they chase a sixth straight win.
Hull made his first-class debut just last year and has picked up 16 wickets in 10 matches for Leicestershire in Division Two of the County Championship.
However, the 6'7" tall pacer has impressed with his pace and ability to move the ball. He has thus been rewarded with a Test debut, replacing Matthew Potts for the third Test at The Oval starting on Friday. England are eyeing another 3-0 series sweep after achieving the same feat against the West Indies in July.
This season, however, Hull's numbers have not been impressive, taking just two wickets in the championship at an average of 182.50. But England believe they have spotted something in him worth backing.
England have made it a habit of picking young players since head coach Brendon McCullum and captain Ben Stokes took over. Spinners Rehan Ahmed and Shoaib Bashir, among others, were thrown straight into the deep end.
Ollie Pope said he is looking forward to see what Hull has to offer. “He's obviously got a massive ceiling,” said the stand-in captain. “He's pretty massive himself as well, which is handy as a bowler.
“When you're 6ft 7in and you can get it down, pushing up to the 85-90mph mark with a bit of swing and the left-arm angle, there's a lot to like. It's a great week for him to come in, learn a little bit and show off exactly what he can do.”
England have made it clear that Hull's modest statistics will not be held against him. The team see a player with the right ingredients to succeed at the highest level.
“We've played four right-arm seamers for the first two games so it's just something different for the opposition batters to think about,” said Pope. “It's a point of difference and he's got some good pace when he's clicking in the nets.
“The numbers sometimes speak for themselves but there's obviously a bigger picture with some of the guys. There's a little bit more to the numbers and I think it's credit to the way the guys have gone about it, the boldness from Brendon and Ben to get these guys in the squad at such a young age.”
Meanwhile, England white-ball captain Jos Buttler has been ruled out of the T20 series against Australia because of a right calf injury and could also miss the ODI series between the teams.
Buttler has been replaced in the T20 squad by Jamie Overton, while Phil Salt will take over as captain having also deputised for Buttler in the role for the Manchester Originals in the recent Hundred tournament.
Buttler has been out since July because of the injury and England said in a statement he has had a “setback” in his recovery.
The three-match T20 series with Australia begins next Wednesday. The five-match ODI series starts on September 19, so Buttler has time to recover. Batsman Jordan Cox has been added to the ODI squad as cover in case Buttler does not make it.
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo 4-cyl
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Power: 190bhp
Torque: 300Nm
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The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 217hp at 5,750rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1,900rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh130,000
On sale: now
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
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Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Canada
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS
Estijaba – 8001717 – number to call to request coronavirus testing
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