Team director Ashley Giles says England have no plans to "rush" their Indian Premier League stars back for next month's Test series against New Zealand and could introduce new faces to cope with a packed schedule. The suspension of the IPL because of the devastating coronavirus outbreak in India has left England with a potentially larger player pool than they envisaged for the two-Test series against New Zealand. Among those currently serving quarantine periods are Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes and Sam Curran, all of whom have Test contracts with England. "All these guys (returning from the IPL) are currently in quarantine and have had a number of spells in quarantine and bubbles," Giles said on Monday. After the New Zealand series, England have five Tests at home to India before travelling to Australia later this year in a bid to regain the Ashes.

Source: News 24 May 10, 2021 12:00 UTC