England cricket team dropped opener Zak Crawley and handed a first call-up to Emilio Gay in a revamped squad for the opening test against New Zealand cricket team, marking the start of a rebuild following their 4-1 Ashes defeat in Australia.
Durham batter Gay, 26, earned his place after an impressive County Championship campaign that has included three centuries.
Uncapped fast bowler Sonny Baker and wicketkeeper-batter James Rew were also included in the squad.
The reshuffle comes after criticism of England’s reluctance to move on from struggling players during the Ashes series. Ollie Pope, who was dropped before the third test in Australia, was not recalled.
England’s pace attack is boosted by the return of Ollie Robinson, while Gus Atkinson retained his place despite suffering concussion concerns after being struck twice on the helmet while batting for Surrey on Sunday.
With Jofra Archer unavailable because of his Indian Premier League commitments, Baker was given an opportunity in the seam attack. Matthew Fisher, who joined the Ashes squad after Mark Wood was ruled out, also kept his spot.
The squad selection under captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum signals a shift in direction as England prepare for a busy home summer beginning with the first test at Lord’s Cricket Ground on June 4.
England will host New Zealand in a three-test series before facing India national cricket team in eight limited-overs matches later in the season.
The England and Wales Cricket Board also announced the appointment of former Australian international Marcus North as national selector.
Squad: Ben Stokes (captain), Rehan Ahmed, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Matthew Fisher, Emilio Gay, James Rew, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue.
