Three new faces in England U-19 squad

A 14-man England Under-19 squad has been named for the two Test matches against Sri Lanka later this month with three new players included in the set-up.

Nottinghamshire's Jacob Ball, Daniel Bell-Drummond from Kent and Lewis Gregory of Somerset get their first taste of U-19 action alongside more established names like Azeem Rafiq, the Yorkshire offspinner, and Gloucestershire pace bowler David Payne.

"I feel we have selected a balanced squad for this Test series against Sri Lanka, bringing in three new faces alongside a core of players who have played for England U19s over the past year," said John Abrahams, the ECB elite player development manager.

"A number of players still eligible to play at this level are now regularly playing first-class cricket and we are delighted with their progress and feel that they should remain with their counties. This gives us an excellent opportunity to test less experienced players in what will be a demanding series."

A captain has yet to be named and will be chosen when the squad meets up on July 16 ahead of the series. Rafiq, who is a regular for Yorkshire in one-day cricket, will be one of the favourites for the position. Following the Test series there are two Twenty20 matches and five ODIs.

Squad Adam Ball (Kent), Jacob Ball (Nottinghamshire), Michael Bates (Hampshire), Daniel Bell-Drummond (Kent), Paul Best (Warwickshire), Matthew Dunn (Surrey), Lewis Gregory (Somerset), Ateeq Javid (Warwickshire), Jack Manuel (Worcestershire), David Payne (Gloucestershire), Azeem Rafiq (Yorkshire), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Atif Sheikh (Derbyshire), Luke Wells (Sussex)