LONDON (AFP): Teenage leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed has been added to England’s squad for the second Ashes Test against Australia as cover for Moeen Ali.
Ahmed, 18, became the youngest man to play Test cricket for England when he was picked to play in Pakistan in December.
The Leicestershire player made an eye-catching debut for Ben Stokes’s side in Karachi, taking seven wickets in the match and 5-48 in the second innings.
But Ahmed has taken just six wickets in seven matches in the second division of the County Championship this season, at an average of more than 67.
Off-spinning all-rounder Moeen struggled with a finger blister in the dramatic first Test at Edgbaston, which Australia won by two wickets.
The 36-year-old, who was playing in his first Test for two years, still hopes to be fit for the second match of the five-game series at Lord’s, starting on Wednesday.
There is also the possibility that England will select a four-man seam attack augmented by Joe Root’s part-time spin.
