Ali returns to England U19s for South Africa series

Young Warwickshire leg spinner Tazeem Ali has been selected for an England Under-19s series in South Africa later this month.

briggford

2025-01-08T10:00:00.000Z

Ali features in an 18-man squad set to play three Youth ODIs and two Youth Test matches against South Africa U19s.

The group fly out on Thursday (9 Jan) ahead of a warm-up game on 14 January against Western Province CC, Cape Town, before the opening ODI three days later.

Ali – who signed a contract extension in the summer keeping him at Edgbaston until the end of 2026 – was a regular feature in the Young Lions side last year.

The 18-year-old was part of the U19s side that faced Sri Lanka in three Youth ODIs in July, and was also part of the ICC Under-19s World Cup year where he was the fourth leading wicket taker with 14 scalps.

He said: “It’s another chance for me to play with some of the best young players in the country and be around some top coaches. I think this is the fourth time I’ve been involved with England Under-19s squads and I feel my game has improved each time.

“Matches against South Africa will be a good test, I want to do well and go at the games hard.”

Ali has taken eight wickets in eight List A matches with Warwickshire, including best figures of 3/53.

Warwickshire First Team Coach Mark Robinson, added: “This represents another great opportunity for Taz to further his development with England’s Young Lions, and gain more invaluable experience playing overseas.

“Taz is clear on what he’s working on and we are in regular contact with England’s coaching staff to ensure we are fully aligned.”

And Young Lions Head Coach, Michael Yardy, said: “After putting in a lot of purposeful work on a really good camp before Christmas, we get the opportunity to play against South Africa Under-19s, which will be very exciting for the boys competing in an England shirt."

Squad

Archie Vaughan (Somerset - captain)Farhan Ahmed (Nottinghamshire)Tazeem Ali (Warwickshire)Ben Dawkins (Kent)Kesh Fonseka (Lancashire)Alex French (Surrey)Alex Green (Leicestershire)Jack Home (Worcestershire)James Isbell (Middlesex)Eddie Jack (Hampshire)Ben Mayes (Hampshire)James Minto (Durham)Harry Moore (Derbyshire)Joe Moores (Lancashire)Thomas Rew (Somerset)Aaryan Sawant (Middlesex)Naavya Sharma (Middlesex)Alexander Wade (Yorkshire)

Match schedule

14 January: 50-over warm-up – England Men U19s v Western Province CC, Cape Town.17 January: 1st Youth ODI – England Men U19s v South Africa Men U19s, Western Province CC, Cape Town19 January: 2nd Youth ODI – England Men U19s v South Africa Men U19s, Western Province CC, Cape Town22 January: 3rd Youth ODI – England Men U19s v South Africa Men U19s, Paul Roos Gymnasium, Stellenbosch26 January - 29 January: 1st Youth Test – England Men U19s v South Africa Men U19s, Coetzenburg CC, Stellenbosch3 February - 6 February: 2nd Youth Test – England Men U19s v South Africa Men U19s, Western Province CC, Cape Town