Jonathan Trott Named Batting Coach As ECB Appoints New Management Group After Seven Members Test Covid-19 Positive

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have announced a revamped management group for the England team led by Chris Silverwood and which sees Jonathan Trott as the batting coach, for the upcoming ODI series against Pakistan.

ECB had to conjure up a totally new team after seven members of the England team including support staff tested COVID-19 positive 48 hours after the third ODI against Sri Lanka. The ECB named an 18-man squad which will be captain by Ben Stokes, as all members were immediately isolated following the protocols laid by the UK government.

Anthony Mcgrath, Jeetan Patel And Alan Richardson Join Jonathan Trott And Chris Silverwood In Coaching Group

While Head Coach Chris Silverwood, who was supposed to take a break before the India Test series began, will accompany the team, ECB has named assistant coaches in Anthony McGrath and Jonathan Trott (both batting), Alan Richardson (pace bowling), and Jeetan Patel (spin bowling).

“We have been mindful that the emergence of the Delta variant, along with our move away from the stringent enforcement of bio-secure environments, could increase the chances of an outbreak. We made a strategic choice to try to adapt protocols, in order to support the overall wellbeing of our players and management staff who have spent much of the last 14 months living in very restricted conditions,” Tom Harrison, the ECB Chief Executive Officer, was quoted as saying by ECB.co.uk earlier today.

The series gets underway on July 8 in Cardiff, with subsequent ODIs to be played on July 10 and 13 at Lord’s and Birmingham, respectively. The 50-over series will be followed by three T20Is, scheduled from July 16 to 20.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) has extended their full support to the ECB stating that they are satisfied and comfortable with the precautions put in place by the hosts to ensure the security of the visitors.

England revised squad for ODIs:

Ben Stokes, Jake Ball, Danny Briggs, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Lewis Gregory, Tom Helm, Will Jacks, Daniel Lawrence, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Matt Parkinson, David Payne, Phil Salt, John Simpson, James Vince

Also Read: ‘That Must Be The End Of His International Career’ : Michael Vaughan Unhappy At The Opener’s Omission From England’s 18-Man ODI Squad To Face Pakistan