Had to double check that was right! and the Thunder have some international talents like Alex Hales and Rilee Roussow. impressive from the Strikers to do it without needing even a delivery from Rashid Khan.
Excellent news - Rehan Ahmed to make his debut (for Jacks). Foakes back for Anderson so presumably Stokes is able to bowl now.
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes, Rehan Ahmed, Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Jack Leach.
About the right team I think, looking forward to seeing Ahmed.
So am i. I just hope he doesn't go to all parts of the ground and have his confidence damaged. Fingers crossed he bowls well and has a long and successful career ahead of him.
I still would much prefer to have seen Matt Parkinson out there, someone who's been constantly overlooked. It would have been a perfect "no pressure" game for him too
Talk about a family of precocious talent. I hadn't realised that Rehan has two cricketing brothers - Raheem, who at the age of 18 played a few 2nd XI T20 matches for Leicestershire in 2021 and Farhan who played half a dozen games for Notts 2nd XI last season and he's still only 14!!!
I still would much prefer to have seen Matt Parkinson out there, someone who's been constantly overlooked. It would have been a perfect "no pressure" game for him too
I do feel sorry for Parkinson but I suspect that England have opted to protect the future by including someone who could be special (and who is being courted by the various white ball franchises) as opposed to someone who they know all about and who will still be available, because he isn't in such demand, should Ahmed fail to impress. That isn't fair but he may not be the last victim in the game to that strategy or the Ahmed the only player picked in front of him. Livingstone, after all, hadn't played a red ball match of any nature for 15 months before playing in the First Test in this series and Jacks hardly had the sort of First Class record that jumped off the page before being selected for this tour either.
Sky have just shown footage of Rehan Ahmed bowling in front of Shane Warne at the age of 13. Ahmed says that he got Stokes and Root out bowling in the nets at that age. Safe to say that England have had him on their radar for at least five years. I hope that it's not too early for him but, either way, he will learn from the experience.
Robinson opens one end and spin the other - not Ahmed but Leach who gets smacked for two boundaries over the top. That might be the end of the experiment.
Leach continues and is the first England spinner to share the new ball in the first innings of a Test match in over one hundred years. The last time was 1921. David Gower denies in the commentary box that he played in that Test
Robinson has been off the pitch since his opening three over spell with an upset stomach. A few players have been suffering from that in the last few days including Ahmed who didn't train yesterday.
Wood strikes with a short ball that finds the edge of Shan Masood's bat as the batsman is caught down at fine leg some 20 yards or so inside the boundary by Leach
With the score on 59-2 off 16 overs, England's youngest ever Test player comes on to bowl. Jimmy Anderson was playing in his 10th Test match on the day Rehan Ahmed was born!
1899 was the last time someone made their debut for England with just 3 First Class Tests to his name. Gower was again denies he was playing at that time
Ahmed is going for a few (as is Leach for that matter) but is bowling a consistent line and length. The issue is that the length is just a bit too full and you can count on two fingers the short balls he's bowled, one of which was the wrongun' which ended up as a bit of a long hop
Appeal for caught down the leg side - Foakes off Robinson - soft signal is not out (but that has no relevance unless technology isn't working) and it is given out!
Comments
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes, Rehan Ahmed, Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Jack Leach.
I just hope he doesn't go to all parts of the ground and have his confidence damaged.
Fingers crossed he bowls well and has a long and successful career ahead of him.
18-1
46-2 off 12.3
Robinson is back on the pitch and replaces Leach
117-3 at lunch