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England name unchanged squad

Following on from their emphatic three-day victory in the first Test against Bangladesh, England have named an unchanged squad for the second game which begins at Chester-le-Street on Friday

Cricinfo staff
31-May-2005


Jon Lewis: included in both squads © Getty Images
Following on from their emphatic three-day victory in the first Test against Bangladesh, England have named an unchanged squad for the second game which begins at Chester-le-Street on Friday.
Jon Lewis, the uncapped Gloucestershire seamer, retains his place in a squad of 12, as does Gareth Batty, who bowled precisely zero overs at Lord's but is included ahead of the unfit Ashley Giles.
Graham Thorpe, whose position had come under scrutiny in the aftermath of Saturday's innings-and-261-run win, has also been retained for what will be his 100th Test. Though Thorpe chipped in with a chanceless 42, there had been some speculation that, at 35 and with a contract with New South Wales to ease him into retirement, he might have made way for a younger man - specifically Kevin Pietersen.
Instead, Pietersen will have to content himself with a place in the 14-man one-day squad for the NatWest Series. Lewis has been included in that set-up for the first time as well, as James Anderson slips out the back exit to continue his rehabilitation at county level. Darren Gough holds his place after an impressive start to the county season.
Commenting on the selection, David Graveney, England's chairman of selectors, said: "We have retained the same 11 who played at Lord's together with Jon Lewis, and Duncan Fletcher and Michael Vaughan will make a final decision on the starting line-up once they have assessed the pitch and the conditions at Durham.
"Lewis had an excellent A tour, continues to perform consistently for Gloucestershire in both forms of the game and fully merits a place in both Test and one-day squads. He is keen to represent his country and I am sure that he will be ready to take full advantage of any opportunities that come his way."
Alex Wharf, who toured with the one-day squad this winter, was not considered because of a side strain.
Test squad Marcus Trescothick, Andrew Strauss, Michael Vaughan (capt), Ian Bell, Graham Thorpe, Andrew Flintoff, Geraint Jones (wk), Gareth Batty, Simon Jones, Matthew Hoggard, Stephen Harmison, Jon Lewis.
One-day squad Michael Vaughan (capt), Kabir Ali, Paul Collingwood, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, Darren Gough, Stephen Harmison, Geraint Jones, Simon Jones, Jon Lewis, Kevin Pietersen, Vikram Solanki, Andrew Strauss, Marcus Trescothick