England have opened the door for Brydon Carse to return to Test cricket for the tour of South Africa by naming the pace bowler in the Lions squad.
Carse could come into the Test squad as cover for Josh Tongue, who will miss the opener to the three-Test series to be at the birth of his second child.
England have named a 15-man group for the series, which begins in Johannesburg on 17 December. Uncapped Nottinghamshire left-arm spinner Liam Patterson-White is called up for the first time, at the expense of Shoaib Bashir.
Carse has not been part of any England squad since being handcuffed – explained as arrested then de-arrested – outside a nightclub in Derby in August.
Although Derbyshire Police have ended their investigation into a potential assault, Carse has been charged by the Cricket Regulator, with a verdict still to come.
Carse has continued to play for Durham and has remained available for England selection since the Derby incident.
However, England have previously explained his absence by a need for Carse to spend time away from the international arena.
Speaking as the Test and Lions squads were announced on Monday, England selector Marcus North said: “The past few months, under investigation, there has been a time where he has stood back, a time of reflection.
“It’s obviously been a challenging time for Brydon, it’s one that we haven’t felt that the demands of playing international cricket and what he was dealing with wasn’t necessarily right for Brydon or for us.
“There have been numerous conversations over this period. The conclusion is we feel he is in a place where we feel we can introduce him back into the England environment and we feel the Lions is the right place for him to come.”
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England squad for three-Test series in South Africa: Joe Root (captain), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Sam Cook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Dan Lawrence, Liam Patterson-White, Ollie Robinson, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue.
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Tongue is missing England’s one-day series in Australia with a toe injury and is due to see a specialist in the UK.
Depending on the status of his injury, he could play in England’s only warm-up game ahead of the South Africa Tests before returning home for the birth, leaving the tourists a seamer light.
Carse will be competing with other Lions seamers Henry Crocombe, Olly Stone, Matthew Fisher, Eddie Jack, Matthew Potts and Mitchell Stanley for the chance to cover for Tongue.
And North confirmed England will call up “one or two” players to the senior squad.
“This is where I feel using the Lions tour to our advantage – we have a very strong bowling group in that Lions programme,” he said.
“That enables us to have a look at where they are at, under competition and training.”
The tour of South Africa will be England’s first under new head coach Stephen Fleming.
With the white-ball team currently in Perth preparing for the first one-day against Australia on Friday, Fleming travelled from his home in New Zealand to meet with the rest of the management and select the Test squad.
Jacob Bethell returns to the Test team for the first time since July following a knee injury.
The left-hander’s return creates congestion in the top order after Emilio Gay and Jordan Cox both featured in the 3-0 home win over Pakistan, with North confirming England are yet to settle on their top six for the first Test against South Africa.
All-rounder Sam Curran, touted as a potential replacement for former captain Ben Stokes, was not considered because he is getting married. The wedding was planned before Stokes announced his international retirement during the summer.
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England Lions red-ball squad for two first-class matches in South Africa: Shoaib Bashir, Brydon Carse, James Coles, Mason Crane, Henry Crocombe, Matthew Fisher, Jack Haynes, George Hill, Eddie Jack, Ben Mayes, Ben McKinney, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, James Rew, Thomas Rew, Mitch Stanley, Olly Stone, Asa Tribe.
England Lions 50-over squad: Rehan Ahmed, Brydon Carse, Mason Crane, Adam Finch, Matthew Fisher, Calvin Harrison, Jack Haynes, George Hill, Ben Mayes, Ben McKinney, Ollie Pope, James Rew, Naavya Sharma, Ekansh Singh, Asa Tribe.
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Bashir’s omission is eye-catching, given the faith England showed in the off-spinner under Stokes and previous Test coach Brendon McCullum.
Given a debut at the age of 20 and after playing only six previous first-class matches, Bashir was fast-tracked as England’s number-one spinner, becoming the youngest England bowler to 50 Test wickets in the process.
However, a broken hand and a lack of form meant he was not picked during last winter’s 4-1 defeat in Australia, and conditions meant he bowled in only one of England’s six home Tests during the past summer.
Bashir was still the only specialist red-ball spinner given a central contract last month, an indication he remained the first choice, though is now effectively dropped from a squad for the first time in his England career. The 23-year-old will instead join Carse in the Lions.
“Our investment hasn’t changed,” said North of Bashir. “He is still a very young man, he is someone who we still have a very positive outlook for.
“We look at each Test series in isolation, and we feel Liam gives us the best balance and that spinner for this tour. We continue to be incredibly invested in Shoaib over the winter.”
Patterson-White, who turned 28 on Sunday, is called up on the back of strong form for Nottinghamshire and after being given an England development contract.
Last season, his 42 wickets were the most by a spinner in Division One of the County Championship, while he can contribute with the bat too, having made three first-class hundreds.
Patterson-White may also have benefitted from new coach Fleming’s links to Nottinghamshire, the county he once captained.
“Liam has got some great attributes,” said North. “There is a lot of consistency with Liam and his bowling.
“We feel that has really come and matured during the past two seasons at Nottinghamshire. He has the ability to hold an end, but also get into the game at the back end.
“We’re really excited to see Liam in that Test environment. It’s recognition of his development over the past year or so.”
The Test squad will arrive in South Africa in different groups, with some joining the Lions in late November and others after returning to the UK following their part in the three one-dayers in Australia.
From the Test players who are also involved in the T20 series in Australia, white-ball captain Harry Brook, Bethell and Cox will miss the fifth and final match of the series in order to travel to South Africa.
For Brook, it will be the first England game he has missed since the T20 tour of Ireland last September. In his absence, all-rounder Will Jacks will captain England for the first time.