England Announce 14-Man Squad for First Test vs India; Jamie Overton Returns After 3 Years
Jamie Overton makes a surprise comeback as England name squad for opening Test against India starting June 20 at Headingley.

England have named a 14-player squad for the opening Test of their upcoming series against India, set to begin on June 20 at Headingley. All-rounder Ben Stokes will captain the side, with fast bowler Jamie Overton earning a surprise recall nearly three years after his Test debut.
Overton, whose only appearance came against New Zealand in 2022, rejoins the Test setup as part of a revamped pace unit. Gus Atkinson was ruled out of selection due to a hamstring injury suffered during England’s recent Test against Zimbabwe at Trent Bridge.
The pace attack features Overton alongside Chris Woakes, Josh Tongue, and Brydon Carse. Shoaib Bashir remains the lone specialist spinner in the squad, while Jacob Bethell returns after missing last month’s one-off Zimbabwe Test.
The top-order remains unchanged, with Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, and Ollie Pope retaining their spots after impressive centuries against Zimbabwe. Jamie Smith, who kept wickets in that match, is expected to continue behind the stumps.
England’s 14-man squad:
Ben Stokes (Durham) – Captain, Shoaib Bashir (Somerset), Jacob Bethell (Warwickshire), Harry Brook (Yorkshire), Brydon Carse (Durham), Sam Cook (Essex), Zak Crawley (Kent), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Jamie Overton (Surrey), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Jamie Smith (Surrey), Josh Tongue (Nottinghamshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)
India Begin Transition with New Captain and Return of Karun Nair
The BCCI had earlier announced an 18-member squad for the England tour, marking a significant shift in Indian cricket. With both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retiring from the longest format, the selectors handed the captaincy to Shubman Gill, signaling the start of a new era.
Ravichandran Ashwin’s absence will also be felt, as this will be India’s first Test series without the veteran off-spinner since his retirement during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
In a notable inclusion, Karun Nair has been recalled to the Test side after an eight-year absence. The middle-order batter staked his claim with a double century for India A against England Lions last week. Other standouts from that match included Abhimanyu Easwaran, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Nitish Kumar Reddy, all of whom scored half-centuries in the second innings and are part of the touring squad.
The India vs England Test series promises to be a fascinating contest, with both sides entering a transitional phase and looking to lay the foundation for their next generation of Test stars.