Yorkshire leg-spinner Jafer Chohan has earned his first England call-up for the limited-overs tour of the Caribbean in a major success story for the South Asian Cricket Academy.
England captain Jos Buttler is set to make his comeback in three ODIs and five T20s from October 31 to November 17 after missing the recent white-ball series against Australia due to a nagging calf injury.
While Hampshire fast bowler John Turner and Warwickshire all-rounder Dan Mousley are the other uncapped members in a 14-strong squad to take on the West Indies, the most eye-catching selection is Chohan.
The 22-year-old only made his professional debut in May 2023 after being recommended to the White Rose by both SACA, which aims to provide British South Asians with a smoother route into county cricket, and Joe Root, who alongside Ben Duckett was dismissed by Chohan in an England net session in late 2022.
First SACA Graduate in an England Squad
His career has comprised of just 23 T20s and he is yet to make his List A debut but a day after signing a three-year contract with Yorkshire, Chohan becomes the first SACA graduate to be drafted into an England men’s squad.
“It feels like an absolute dream to be selected,” he said. “It’s what I’ve worked for my whole life. I’ve had a great week.
“For me this is a really good opportunity to be around some of the best players in the world, learn as much as I can and just really sharpen up my game as much as possible.
“My skillset is a very unique one and a bit different to what England has had before.
“I feel very confident in my game and I like to express myself as a person with how I bowl and I think that works to my strength. Being in this new environment will be a really good opportunity to thrive.”
Chohan has spent time at Adil Rashid’s cricket centre and now counts the leg-spinner as a teammate at Headingley, where he has also shared the dressing room with Root, Jonny Bairstow and Dawid Malan.
“Having big England names in the Yorkshire dressing room it doesn’t get too much better than that in terms of helping me improve,” Chohan added.
“It has helped at Yorkshire seeing how England players go about their work and how well they understand their games and how well they know what works for them.”
Balancing Series’
Harry Brook deputised for Buttler as skipper in the 3-2 ODI defeat to Australia although the Yorkshireman is unlikely to be available for the 50-over matches against the Windies because the series starts in Antigua just three days after the scheduled end of a Test tour of Pakistan.
But the England and Wales Cricket Board confirmed two players who miss out on selection for the third and final Test against Pakistan will be spirited away to join up with the white-ball squad in Antigua.
They could choose from Brook, Ben Duckett, Brydon Carse, Jordan Cox, Matthew Potts, Jamie Smith and Olly Stone, who were part of the ODI squad against Australia and flew to Multan on Tuesday.
Sam Curran could make his ODI return after being axed for the 50-over portion of Australia’s visit, while Jamie Overton, capped once at Test and T20 level but not in the middle format, is also involved.
There is no room, however, for left-arm seamer Josh Hull, who withdrew from the Pakistan tour with a quad injury.
England ODI and T20 squads for West Indies tour: J Buttler (captain), J Archer, J Bethell, J Chohan, S Curran, W Jacks, L Livingstone, S Mahmood, D Mousley, J Overton, A Rashid, P Salt, R Topley, J Turner.
