Rehan Receives England Lions Call

Leicestershire CCC all-rounder Rehan Ahmed has been selected as part of England Lions’ 15-player training group for a trip to the UAE next month.

The Academy graduate will travel with the squad to the UAE ahead of a developmental camp between November 6-27, which will simultaneously support England’s Test preparations for their upcoming tour of Pakistan.

Members of the Test party are set to join the Lions during their training camp before the two full squads contest a three-day practice match in Abu Dhabi from November 23-25. 

Ahmed’s selection follows a successful first call-up to the Lions in July, where the leg-spinner impressed on debut against South Africa, removing Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, and Janneman Malan during a 50-over fixture at Taunton to finish with figures of 3/54.

The trip will write the latest chapter in a whirlwind year for the 18-year-old, who has starred on both the domestic and international stage during 2022.

After shining during England Under 19’s run to the World Cup final in the winter, Ahmed made his County Championship and T20 debuts for Leicestershire, striking with his maiden delivery in the Vitality Blast before finishing the red-ball campaign with both his maiden century and five-fer away at Derbyshire.

Ahmed, who committed his long-term future to the Foxes in April, earned wider recognition across the summer with call-ups to the Lions squad and to The Hundred, where he featured on five occasions for 2021 Men’s champions Southern Brave.

Speaking about his selection, Ahmed said: “I’m looking forward to working alongside some world-class players and testing myself in overseas conditions.

“Playing with and against international calibre players really helped my development this year. This is another great opportunity for me to learn from some of the best and take my game to the next level.”

Full England Lions Training Group: Tom Abell (Somerset), Rehan Ahmed (Leicestershire), Josh Bohannon (Lancashire), Jack Carson (Sussex), Sam Conners (Derbyshire), Sam Cook (Essex), Matthew Fisher (Yorkshire), Haseeb Hameed (Nottinghamshire), Tom Haines (Sussex), Jack Haynes (Worcestershire), Lyndon James (Nottinghamshire), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Liam Patterson-White (Nottinghamshire), Matthew Potts (Durham), Jamie Smith (Surrey).