England have opened the door for Brydon Carse to return to Test cricket for the South Africa tour, naming the pace bowler in the Lions squad as cover for Josh Tongue, who will miss the opener due to the birth of his second child. The 15‑man squad for the three‑Test series, starting 17 December in Johannesburg, includes Carse and uncapped left‑arm spinner Liam Patterson‑White replacing Shoaib Bashir.
Carse, who has been absent from any England squad since his August arrest outside a Derby nightclub, remains available for selection and will compete with Henry Crocombe, Olly Stone, Matthew Fisher, Eddie Jack, Matthew Potts and Mitchell Stanley for a spot. Selector Marcus North said the Lions tour offers a chance to assess the bowling group under competition and training.
Tongue is sidelined by a toe injury and may appear in a warm‑up match before the South Africa Tests, while Jacob Bethell returns to the Test team for the first time since July after a knee injury. Sam Curran was omitted because of his wedding, and England will consider calling up one or two Lions players to the senior squad under new head coach Stephen Fleming.
Source: BBC Sport · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing