England v Sri Lanka: Chris Woakes returns to T20 squad
- Published
Chris Woakes averages 30.33 with the bat and 36.14 with the ball since making his T20 debut for England in 2011
All-rounder Chris Woakes returns to the England Twenty20 squad for the first time since 2015 for three matches against Sri Lanka this month.
Warwickshire's Woakes, 32, played the most recent of his eight T20 internationals in 2015.
Yorkshire seamer David Willey, 31, also features in a 16-man squad, having last played a T20 for England in May 2019.
Sophia Gardens hosts the first two T20s on 23 and 24 June, and the Ageas Bowl the final match on 26 June.
England T20 squad: Eoin Morgan (capt), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Jonny Bairstow (wicketkeeper, Yorkshire), Sam Billings (wicketkeeper, Kent), Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper, Lancashire), Sam Curran (Surrey), Tom Curran (Surrey), Liam Dawson (Hampshire), Chris Jordan (Sussex), Liam Livingstone (Lancashire), Dawid Malan (Yorkshire), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Jason Roy (Surrey), David Willey (Yorkshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham).
All-rounder Ben Stokes is absent with a fractured finger, Jofra Archer has an elbow injury and fellow pace bowler Reece Topley has a side strain.
Woakes, Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler and Sam Curran were not considered for the current Test series against New Zealand as they were rested after having to quarantine following the postponed Indian Premier League.
The T20 World Cup is scheduled to take place in India in October and November.
"With the T20 World Cup only a few months away, this summer is about perfecting our team and continue to progress on the field," said England head coach Chris Silverwood.
"Chris Woakes and David Willey are very experienced cricketers, and to have them both in the mix is exciting and shows the depth of squad we have available."
England will play Sri Lanka in three one-day internationals in June and July after the T20 series.
It's a mum-eat-mum world: Motherland returns for a third season of playdate politics and PTA terror
You're Dead to Me: Was Lord Byron the most scandalous celebrity of the 19th century?
