Skipper Davies gets England Lions call-up

Alex Davies’ standout 2024 season has been rewarded with a call-up to the England Lions for their New Year tour of Australia.

The Warwickshire Captain – who hit a career-high 1,115 runs in the County Championship last summer – is part of a 16-player squad that plays three red ball games Down Under.

The England A tour features two four-day matches against a Cricket Australia XI (14-17 and 22-25 January) followed by a First Class ‘Test’ against Australia A in Sydney starting on 30 January.

He’s joined in the touring party by Bears teammate Hamza Shaikh, 18, who was recently involved in a Lions development camp in South Africa.

It’s six years since Davies, aged 30, was last involved with England Lions.

He was part of a tour that faced India A in January 2019 – alongside Danny Briggs and Sam Hain – and scored a century in a warm-up 50-over game against an Indian Board President XI.

Davies – who recently signed a contract extension that keeps him at Edgbaston until the end of the 2027 season – said the call was a welcome surprise.

“It was out of the blue,” said Davies. “I was running around the Edgbaston track last week and had a missed call off Freddie (Flintoff). I wondered what that could be, called him back and he asked if I wanted to be part of the Lions squad.

“I’ve been with the Lions before when I was younger. They are picking a lot of youngsters now so I’d kind of put that side of my career to bed. My focus was to bang runs out here with Warwickshire, be consistent in the Championship, and just see what happens.

“Freddie said they’d like some experience on the trip. It’s a nice reward and good to know that if you do have a good season then you can come into the reckoning.

“I think they are looking for some leadership support around a young group. It’s a bonus for me, hopefully I can give them what they need and play some decent cricket.

“I’ll be away for a few weeks but I’ll still be staying across everything back at Edgbaston, getting on calls with Robbo (Mark Robinson) and the guys about our plans.”

Davies has played 16 times for England Lions, including two First Class games, scoring two half centuries for the England A team.

England men’s Performance Director Ed Barney, said: “We have rewarded players who have proven themselves at this level and those with significant potential.

“Matches and tours of Australia are always important and we relish the opportunity to test ourselves against quality opposition.”

The tour party departs on January 3.

The squad will be coached by Andrew Flintoff, supported by Neil Killeen, Richard Dawson and Graeme Swann. Australian batting coach Trent Woodhill has also been brought in as a consultant on the tour.

Squad

Sonny Baker (Hampshire)
Shoaib Bashir (Somerset)
Pat Brown (Derbyshire)
James Coles (Sussex)
Sam Cook (Essex)
Alex Davies (Warwickshire)
Rocky Flintoff (Lancashire)
Tom Hartley (Lancashire)
Tom Lawes (Surrey)
Freddie McCann (Notts)
Ben McKinney (Durham)
James Rew (Somerset)
Hamza Shaikh (Warwickshire)
Mitch Stanley (Lancashire)
Josh Tongue (Notts)
John Turner (Hampshire)