Squads and fixtures announced for 2024 pre-season tour
Lancashire Lightning and Thunder have confirmed their travelling squads for the Club’s 2024 pre-season tour to Dubai and Bangalore – presented by Hilton.
As announced last week, the Red Rose men’s and women’s squads will depart from Manchester to Dubai tomorrow (Thursday 7 March) for warm weather training and a T20 double header at the Sevens Stadium, before heading on a second leg of the tour to Bangalore where they will face local opposition in a range of formats before returning to the UK on Friday 22 March.
SQUAD NEWS:
Keaton Jennings will lead a 16-player Lancashire Lightning squad on the trip.
Saqib Mahmood will be part of the squad in Dubai but will not travel to Bangalore following a joint decision made the Club and player. Due to the complexities of the visa application process – and with Mahmood recently travelling as part of Lancashire’s bowling camp at Desert Springs ten days ago – the seamer will remain in Dubai to further increase his bowling loads ahead of the new season, as opposed to taking the risk of jeopardising his ability to travel by handing over his UK passport in order to secure a visa to enter India.
James Anderson and Tom Hartley both miss the trip due to their participation in the ongoing India vs England Men’s Test series while Jos Buttler, Liam Livingstone and Luke Wood are currently away from the Club due to their participation in the Indian Premier League and Pakistan Super League.
Lancashire Lightning squad: Keaton Jennings (c), Tom Aspinwall, Tom Bailey, George Balderson, George Bell, Jack Blatherwick, Josh Bohannon, Josh Boyden, Steven Croft (player/coach), Matty Hurst, George Lavelle, Saqib Mahmood (Dubai only), Jack Morley, Harry Singh, Luke Wells, Will Williams
Lancashire have a new-look coaching team with Head Coach Dale Benkenstein being joined on the trip by William Porterfield, Craig White, and Steven Croft in a player/coach role.
Ellie Threlkeld captains a 16-player squad heading into Thunder’s third pre-season tour. Threlkeld has spent the New Year playing club cricket in Australia alongside Fi Morris whilst Tara Norris also returns following a spell in Australia and with the USA Women’s National Team.
Scotland internationals Ailsa Lister and Hannah Rainey join the tour after spending pre-season training with Thunder; the pair have both been offered contracts ahead of the new season.
Kate Cross and Sophie Ecclestone are both absent due to their ongoing participation in the Women’s IPL whilst Emma Lamb and Seren Smale are with the England Women A squad in New Zealand.
Thunder squad: Ellie Threlkeld (c), Alice Clarke, Danielle Collins, Naomi Dattani, Phoebe Graham, Liberty Heap, Laura Jackson, Hannah Jones, Ailsa Lister, Fi Morris, Sophie Morris, Daisy Mullan, Tara Norris, Shachi Pai, Hannah Rainey
Newly appointed Head Coach Chris Read will be joined by Assistant Coach Paul Hindmarch and County Age Group pathway lead, Chris Chambers.
FIXTURES:
Lancashire Lightning and Thunder will kick off the 2024 pre-season tour in T20 double header action at the Sevens Stadium, Dubai on Sunday 10 March as they take on UAE Men and UAE Women’s National Teams respectively before Thunder face UAE Women again the following day in a 50-over friendly at the same venue.
Both sides then head to Bangalore where Thunder will take on a Bangalore Representative XI in another 50-over friendly on Friday 15 March before a T20 double header at the Alur KCSA Stadium in Bangalore on Sunday 17 March as Lancashire Lightning take on a Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) XI and Thunder once again face a local Representative XI.
Dale Benkenstein’s Lancashire then switch to red ball action for the final leg of the tour as they face Karnataka in a three-day friendly match starting on Tuesday 19 March at the Alur KCSA Stadium. This will be an historic fixture as an English First-Class County faces an Indian State team that competes in the Ranji Trophy for the first time.
Thunder conclude their tour with two more 50-over matches against local opposition Monday 18 March and Thursday 21 March.
- Sunday 10 March: UAE Men vs Lancashire Lightning – T20 at The Sevens Stadium, Dubai – LIVE on LancsTV
- Sunday 10 March: UAE Women vs Thunder – T20 at The Sevens Stadium, Dubai – LIVE on LancsTV
- Monday 11 March: UAE Women vs Thunder – 50-over match at The Sevens Stadium, Dubai.
- Friday 15 March: Bangalore Representative XI vs Thunder – 50 over match at Venue TBC.
- Sunday 17 March: Bangalore Representative XI vs Thunder – T20 at Alur KSCA Stadium, Bangalore. – LIVE on LancsTV
- Sunday 17 March: KSCA XI vs Lancashire Lightning – T20 at Alur KSCA Stadium, Bangalore. – LIVE on LancsTV
- Monday 18 March: Bangalore Representative XI vs Thunder – 50 over match at Venue TBC. – LIVE on LancsTV
- Tuesday 19 March – Thursday 21 March: Karnataka vs Lancashire Cricket, three-day friendly at Alur KSCA Stadium, Bangalore. – LIVE on LancsTV
- Thursday 21 March: Bangalore Representative XI vs Thunder – 50 over match at Venue TBC.
HOW TO FOLLOW:
LancsTV is set to hit the road with a total of six matches from the tour set to be live streamed for free – with a dedicated broadcast team bringing you UK commentary from Emirates Old Trafford. Subscribe to LancsTV here and be first to know when we go live ahead of the fixtures.
The Club's social media channels will also be bringing you exclusive behind-the-scenes content including interviews, training images and much more from the tour as both squads get set for the 2024 season.
RED ROSE TOGETHER:
The tour will see Lancashire Lightning and Thunder travel side-by-side on a third annual pre-season trip as Lancashire Cricket continues the work of the Club’s Red Rose Together campaign which includes breaking down barriers for women and girls - with groundbreaking investment into women and girls’ cricket, supporting a new era of domestic cricket at both professional and grassroots level.
To follow Red Rose Together initiatives, stay connected with the Club, or to find out how you can get involved in 2024 and join Lancashire Cricket mission of growing the love of the game, visit the website or follow on social media.
