England pick uncapped 20-year-old Shoaib Bashir in Test squad for India

Shoaib Bashir, the 20-year-old from Somerset with 10 wickets in his first-class career, has been named in England's 16-man squad to tour India for a five-match Test series in early 2024 .He is one of three uncapped. players included with left-arm spinner Tom Hartley and fast bowler Gus Atkinson, both of whom represented England in limited-overs cricket.

England captain Ben Stokes, who underwent surgery on his left knee last month, is included in the squad as expected, although it remains to be seen whether he will be fit to bowl. Ben Foakes is also recalled after being dropped for the Ashes, while Jack Leach and Ollie Pope both return to the squad after back and shoulder injuries during the English summer.

Rehan Ahmed, who took seven wickets on his Test debut in Karachi a year ago, is one of four specialist spin options alongside Leach, Hartley and Bashir. There are only four front-row players in the team, with James Anderson and Ollie Robinson complemented by the pace of Atkinson and Mark Wood – meaning there is no place for Chris Woakes.

But it’s the inclusion of Bashir that stands out. He made his professional debut in June after signing a professional contract with Somerset and has made just six first-class appearances, but was the standout player at the recent England Lions training camp in the United Arab Emirates, winning match figures of 6 for 42 in three matches. one-day match against Afghanistan A team.

Rob Key, England's director of cricket, said Bashir's natural qualities, including a high run-out point, had encouraged selectors to look beyond his modest first-class numbers, and added that the The optimistic environment fostered by Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes would help bring out the best of his abilities.

“I think we're more focused on what style of cricket we want to play and what we think is going to win,” Key said. “It's about 'what's someone's advantage?'. It's very difficult, especially for English cricketers, to judge them on their numbers as such. You're not going to Expect your player to average 24 with the ball in county cricket, you try to see something else and support their character.

“You want to see how the ball comes out of their hand – you're addressing more of the art of selection rather than the science of selection – and you support that environment that Stokes and McCullum have created with all the other players, to Get the best out of these players. With Stokesy's captaincy in particular, you are often betting that he will be the one who can get something out of these players. You just want to create an environment where you think they can flourish, which is no easy feat when you're talking about a Test tour of India.”

Hartley has a modest first-class record for Lancashire, with 40 career wickets at 36.57. But England believe he also has attributes – he is 6ft 4in and regularly plays at speeds of 60mph/97km/h or more – that will make him well suited to replicate the role that Axar Patel has played in Indian conditions.

Aside from Woakes, who hinted at his likely non-inclusion earlier this year, other notable omissions include Dan Lawrence, Liam Dawson and Will Jacks. Lawrence was the spare batter throughout the Ashes but was dropped from the team, while Dawson and Jacks both have contracts to play in South Africa's SA20, which directly conflicts with the tour.

The England team will travel to the United Arab Emirates for a preparatory camp in mid-January and will arrive in India shortly before the first Test in Hyderabad on January 25. An England Lions team, which has not yet been named, will also travel to India to follow the main tour.

England Test team: Rehan Ahmed, James Anderson, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Ben Stokes (captain), Mark Wood