Seams like Robbo is back in England fold
SEAMER Ollie Robinson has earned a recall into England’s Test squad for the first two matches of the upcoming series with South Africa.
Ben Stokes’ side faces the Proteas at Lord’s on August 17 before doing battle again later this month at Emirates Old Trafford and concludes its red-ball summer at the Kia Oval for the third Test, which begins on September 8.
Robinson has not played for his country since the Ashes ended in January due to a plethora of fitness issues, mainly linked to his back.
However, he impressed with nine wickets in Sussex’s recent LV= Insurance County Championship match with Nottinghamshire last week and will finally have the chance to catch the eye of new head coach Brendon Mccullum.
He replaces the injured Jamie Overton in the 14-man squad, which is otherwise unchanged from the New Zealand and India Tests.
Mo Bobat, men’s performance director for the England and Wales Cricket Board, said: “It is good to have Ollie Robinson back in the mix.
“He will continue his progress by playing for the Lions against South Africa in a four-day match at Canterbury next week.”
The full squad for the Lions match, which starts on August 9, is set to be announced on Friday.
Robinson will hope to use the four-day fixture to further show his injury troubles are behind him after a frustrating 2022 so far.
Following a disappointing Ashes series, where his fitness and conditioning habits were publicly criticised, he was a spectator during the subsequent tour of the West Indies with back spasms.
The 28-year-old was pencilled in to face New Zealand in May as part of a County Select XI but a stiff back saw him miss out and a bout of Covid-19 further disrupted his season before a strong return to action at Trent Bridge last week.
Robinson has taken 39 wickets in nine Tests at an average of 21.28.