Buttler returns as England captain for West Indies tour

LONDON: Jos Buttler will return as white-ball captain for England’s tour of the West Indies starting later this month after a long injury lay-off, selectors announced on Wednesday.

The 14-man squad for three one-day internationals and five Twenty20 matches in Antigua, Barbados and St Lucia features three uncapped players. Buttler missed England’s recent T20 and ODI series against Australia as he recovered from a calf injury.

England drew the T20 series 1-1 and lost the ODI series 3-2 to the 50-over world champions. Buttler, part of England’s 2019 World Cup-winning team, is one of the most destructive batters in the game in white-ball formats.

But he has not played since the T20 World Cup in the United States and West Indies in June, where England failed to retain their trophy. Yorkshire leg-spinner Jafer Chohan earns his first England call-up, while John Turner and Dan Mousley are the other uncapped players.

Chohan, 22, said selection “feels like an absolute dream”. “My skill set is a very unique one and a bit different from what England has had before,” he said. “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.” The squad will be supplemented with two players from the Test squad in Pakistan, with England starting a three-match series in Multan next week.