Sixth Form Pupil Selected for England Lions Cricket Team

A King Edward VI School Sixth Form pupil has been called up to the England Lions squad for the first time.

Ben, who is part of our men's 1st XI cricket team, has been named in a 15-man squad as the Lions host South Africa A in two matches later this month.

The batsman has been selected after his impressive form for Hampshire. He has featured in all but one of Hampshire's County Championship Division One matches so far this season, scoring his maiden first class half-century earlier this month against Glamorgan.

Ben made his professional debut for Hampshire in August last year, posting a masterful 74 from just 55 balls in a Metro Bank One Day Cup victory over Glamorgan. The following month he went on to make his debut in the Vitality Blast, helping his county defeat Durham in the quarter-finals.

This year has seen him make his first class debut in the County Championship where he began the season as an ever-present.

Now his attentions switch to representing his nation. The England Lions team, formerly known as England A, are coached by Ashes legend Andrew Flintoff and are one-step below the senior England squad. The team is designed as a pathway for the country's best young players to gain international experience before moving into the full squad.

Ben has previously played for England at under-19 level and earlier this year he scored an astonishing 191 against Scotland in the ICC Men's Under-19 World Cup in Zimbabwe and Namibia. It was the highest ever score for an England U19 player in a youth One Day International. England went on to finish as runners-up in the tournament with Ben being named in the team of the tournament after he finished as the player with the most runs (444).

His exploits for Hampshire and England follow on from his standout performances for the school's cricket team. He scored his first century for the 1st XI when he was just 14, smashing 132 off 123 balls in a match against Charterhouse School.

The England Lions series against South Africa A kicks off with two four-day matches and begins this Friday at Arundel Castle Cricket Ground in West Sussex. Then on Friday 29 May, the two sides will meet again, this time at the Kent County Cricket Ground in Beckenham. 

Congratulations on the call-up Ben and good luck for the matches against South Africa.

Find out more about elite sport at King Edward's here.