England's New Faces in T20I and ODI Series Against Sri Lanka
Harry Brook will lead a reshaped England white-ball set-up into the late-summer series against Sri Lanka, as both teams roll out new names and new leaders for six games that feel like more than just a tune-up.
New England caps, new direction
Two uncapped players, Aneurin Donald and Henry Crocombe, headline England’s squads. They arrive from very different angles, but with the same opportunity: to convince selectors they belong at this level.
Donald, the aggressive Derbyshire opener, has battered down the door with his domestic form and is drafted straight into the T20I squad. His inclusion hints at England doubling down on power at the top, even with Phil Salt ruled out by a right quad injury.
Crocombe, the Sussex seamer, gets his break in the ODI group after catching the eye across the summer. England have rarely been shy about blooding quicks on home soil; Crocombe now steps into that well-trodden pathway, one good spell away from changing his career.
Brook captains both formats, a significant show of faith in a player still in the early chapters of his international story. Around him, the core of England’s white-ball engine remains familiar: Jos Buttler, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks and Adil Rashid all feature, while Jofra Archer and Gus Atkinson add pace and hostility.
One of the most notable names back on the sheet is Jamie Overton. The all-rounder has been picked in both T20I and ODI squads after recovering from the thigh injury that kept him out of the India series earlier in the summer. His return gives England a genuine enforcer who can change a game with either discipline.
There are absentees beyond Salt. Jacob Bethell stays on the sidelines as he continues his recovery from knee surgery, leaving England to reshuffle their balance and lean again on Liam Dawson’s all-round reliability.
England T20I squad: Harry Brook (c), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jos Buttler, James Coles, Jordan Cox, Liam Dawson, Aneurin Donald, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Josh Tongue.
England ODI squad: Harry Brook (c), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Tom Banton, Sonny Baker, Jos Buttler, Jordan Cox, Henry Crocombe, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Jamie Overton, Adil Rashid, Joe Root, Josh Tongue.
The presence of Joe Root in the ODI group underlines how seriously England are treating the 50-over leg. Root’s inclusion offers Brook an elite batting ally and a calm voice in the dressing room as he navigates his first full series in charge.
Sri Lanka turn to Asalanka
On the other side, Sri Lanka arrive without their regular white-ball captain. Kusal Mendis, sidelined by a hamstring injury picked up during the Lanka Premier League in July, misses the T20I series after already sitting out the Test tour against India.
Into the gap steps Charith Asalanka. The left-hander not only captains the T20I side but also returns to the format after being dropped for the tour of the West Indies in June. Now he carries both the armband and the weight of a batting order that leans heavily on his temperament.
Pavan Rathnayake comes in as Mendis’ replacement, another young batter asked to grow up quickly in English conditions. In the bowling department, Dilshan Madushanka joins the squad in place of left-arm seamer Binura Fernando, who is ruled out with a back injury. It shifts more responsibility onto Sri Lanka’s frontline attack: Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana and Dushmantha Chameera will all be central to any upset ambitions.
Sri Lanka T20I squad: Charith Asalanka (c), Pathum Nissanka, Kamil Mishara, Lahiru Udara, Kamindu Mendis, Janith Liyanage, Dasun Shanaka, Dunith Wellalage, Wanindu Hasaranga, Maheesh Theekshana, Tharindu Rathnayake, Dushmantha Chameera, Eshan Malinga, Nuwan Thushara, Pavan Rathnayake, Dilshan Madushanka.
For Asalanka, this is more than a stand‑in role. It is a chance to stake a long-term claim to leadership, to show he can marshal a young group against an England side that rarely lets visiting attacks breathe at home.
Six games, six different tests
The tour opens with three T20Is that will whip through England’s late-summer venues.
The series starts in Southampton on September 15, a ground that often rewards clean ball-striking and clever variations with the ball. From there the teams move to Cardiff on September 17, where conditions can tighten and totals shrink, before heading north to Manchester on September 19, where overheads and bounce can turn any evening into a trial by seam.
Then the format stretches out.
The ODIs begin at Chester-le-Street on September 22, a venue where new-ball spells often decide the contest. Leeds follows on September 24, Headingley’s fickle skies and quick outfield testing both judgment and nerve, before the tour closes at The Oval on September 27, a stage that traditionally brings runs and, often, drama.
Across those six matches, Brook’s leadership will be examined, England’s new faces will be exposed, and Asalanka’s Sri Lanka will discover whether this reshaped side can stand up to the demands of an English tour or whether the learning curve proves brutally steep.
