Yardy handed England A captaincy

Michael Yardy can overcome his one-day omission by leading England A in Bangladesh © Getty Images

Michael Yardy, the Sussex allrounder, has been handed the England A captaincy for the tour of Bangladesh after he was overlooked for the main one-day squad in Australia. He will lead a party which includes Yorkshire's exciting leg-spinner Adil Rashid and young paceman Stuart Broad.

Yardy was expected to be named in England's one-day squad after featuring against Pakistan at the tail end of the summer and playing during the Champions Trophy in India. But Monty Panesar's inclusion in the limited overs set-up for the first time has pushed Yardy out of the picture so this tour is an ideal opportunity for him to restablish his credentials.

Two notable omissions are Owais Shah and Robert Key, who were touted as candidates to replace Marcus Trescothick in the Ashes squad before Ed Joyce's call-up. However, David Graveney says this is more to do with handing experience to a young group of batsmen rather than ending the international hopes of Shah and Key.

"Owais Shah and Robert Key remain very much in the selectors' thoughts," he said, "and their non-selection reflects the fact that they have already had extensive experience of touring with England A and the National Academy squad and provides valuable opportunities for other players."

Michael Carberry, Will Jefferson and Nick Compton, who enjoyed a prolific 2006 with Middlesex, are the top-order batsmen to benefit from the selectors' desire to explore their options.

The most eye-catching selection, though, is that of Rashid, the 18-year-old legspinning allrounder who made a dramatic entrance into first-class cricket with Yorkshire last season. He has recently recovered from a stress fracture of the back which meant he missed the Under-19 tour of Malaysia.

Broad, who made his ODI debut against Pakistan in August, has the chance to develop his game further and is joined in the pace attack by Tom Smith, Graham Onions and Amjad Khan, the 26-year-old Danish paceman who has fulfilled his qualifying period with Kent.

"We are also giving an opportunity to Michael Carberry and Will Jefferson," Peter Moores, the National Academy Director, said, "two players who have been around for some time but have shown the attitude and ability to move on to higher honours. The squad will also offer another chance to Alex Loudon and Tim Bresnan, who have both been in the England set up during the last 18 months."

The squad arrives in Dhaka on February 14 for a tour that includes two four-day games in Mirpur and Bogra and three one-dayers against Bangladesh A.

England A squad Michael Yardy (capt), Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Michael Carberry, Nick Compton, Steve Davies, Will Jefferson, Amjad Khan, Alex Loudon, Graham Onions, Matthew Prior, Adil Rashid, Tom Smith