Jennings, Dawson added to England squad as replacements

Keaton Jennings and Liam Dawson are to join the England squad as replacements for the remaining two matches of the Test series in India. Jennings, the uncapped Durham opener who is set to make his England Lions debut against United Arab Emirates in Dubai tomorrow, replaces Haseeb Hameed, whose tour ended with a broken finger in Mohali.

Dawson, the Hampshire allrounder who was also selected for the Lions programme this winter before being released to play for Rangpur Riders in the Bangladesh Premier League, was called up to replace Zafar Ansari, who is still struggling with the back injury he sustained in the second Test in Visakhapatnam. Ansari will stay with the squad and continue to receive medical support in India before returning to England on December 8.

Jennings, 24, made his Durham debut in 2012 and was the leading run-scorer in the 2016 Specsavers County Championship season with 1548 runs at an average of 64, which led to him sweeping a host of awards and earning a spot in the England Lions squad. He has been on the Lions programme for the last month, initially at the Performance Centre in Loughborough and for the last two weeks in Dubai, based at the ICC Academy. He is due to join the England squad in Mumbai on December 5 when they begin preparations for the fourth Test which starts at Wankhede Stadium three days later.