England’s cricket squad has suffered a significant setback with Dillon Pennington being sidelined from the upcoming three-Test series against Sri Lanka due to a hamstring injury he picked up during The Hundred 2024.
Pennington’s hopes of making his international debut have been dashed as he was compelled to pull out of The Hundred due to this injury. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has confirmed that Pennington will not participate in the Test series against Sri Lanka.
Dillon Pennington set to miss Sri Lanka Tests with hamstring injury
Dillon Pennington, a standout performer in this season’s County Championship with 31 wickets at an impressive average of 23.80 for Nottinghamshire, was a strong candidate for selection in England’s Test squad for the upcoming three-match series against Sri Lanka, starting August 21.
Pennington’s recent County Championship form had attracted the attention of England Test captain Ben Stokes, who had expressed confidence in Pennington’s readiness for international cricket. Stokes indicated that if needed, Pennington would likely receive an opportunity in the home series, given his strong performances.
However, Pennington’s hopes of making his England debut were dashed when he suffered a hamstring injury during The Hundred 2024. The injury occurred during his brief stint for the Northern Superchargers against the Oval Invincibles, where he was forced to leave the field after just five deliveries. Derbyshire’s Pat Brown has been signed as Pennington’s replacement by the Northern Superchargers.
According to ESPNcricinfo, the Northern Superchargers confirmed that Pennington will not return for the remainder of The Hundred 2024, thus ruling him out of the Test series against Sri Lanka. This development adds to the uncertainty surrounding England’s preparations, compounded by Zak Crawley’s absence due to a fractured right little finger sustained in the third Test against the West Indies.
England Test Squad For Sri Lanka Series:
Ben Stokes (C), Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood
Earlier, Ben Stokes had said in praise of Pennington: “There’s no doubt that if an opportunity comes to him, then he’ll be ready to go. He’s done everything that you’d expect someone in a squad to do—even if they’re not playing. He’s got a naturally high release point, and I think his move to Notts has been very good for him.
He’s had a lot of clarity given to him… his bowling has progressed so quickly over the last year. That’s the feedback that we got from not only the guys who we use for that, but also Ben Duckett fed back, saying he’s bowled some spells this year [like] at Test level.”
