England Lions head coach Andy Flower says winning is the objective on their winter tour to India, but insists that the development opportunities for the young cricketers in unfamiliar conditions are the key to a successful tour.
The Lions squad landed in Trivandrum, in the southern state of Kerala, on Sunday ahead of a month-long series against India A.
Five one-day games and two four-day unofficial Test matches will give the young squad some valuable match experience, as well as the chance to play against some of India’s best young talent.
Supported by coaches Kevin Shine, Peter Such, Carl Hopkinson and Jonathan Trott, Flower hopes his players will make the most of the opportunity on and off the pitch.
“Both sides will want to play good, winning cricket but I think we all understand that it’s the development opportunity for these high potential youngsters that we’re after,” Flower said.
“The purpose of these Lions tours is to offer our highest potential young talent in the country the opportunity to either train or to play in a competitive tour in foreign conditions. Our county system is good; there are some really talented, outstanding cricketers that come out of it.
“What the county system doesn’t do is offer them these overseas opportunities, so we can do that and have the resources to do it. We get into foreign conditions, with different pitches, different oppositions, different environments, different climates and sometimes different pressures – like the pressure of being on tour for five or six weeks. Some people handle that really easily, some don’t.”
On the India tour, the Lions will experience the dry, dusty pitches – and heat – synonymous with the subcontinent. As Ben Foakes showed in the England tour of Sri Lanka before Christmas, pathway experience in unfamiliar conditions can pay great dividends when stepping up to the senior side.
While the likes of captain Sam Billings, Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope have senior international experience with England, three members of the squad are selected at this level for the first time.
“It’s good for us to offer these environments for our best young talent to grow within,” Flower said. “There’s also a great opportunity for us to get to know the players and see how they respond to the various challenges. We see how they respond to stress – and we try to put them under a bit of stress.
“It’s always really exciting playing cricket in India – the passion and love of the game is something special to behold for us when we visit. The conditions are quite particular and make for very interesting cricket, so I hope our young boys learn quickly and challenge India’s best youngsters.”
Schedule
January 23: 1st 50-over match v India A, Thiruvananthapuram
January 25: 2nd 50-over match v India A, Thiruvananthapuram
January 27: 3rd 50-over match v India A, Thiruvananthapuram
January 29: 4th 50-over match v India A, Thiruvananthapuram
January 31: 5th 50-over match v India A, Thiruvananthapuram
February 7-10: 1st A Test v India A, Wayanad
February 13-16: 2nd A Test v India A, Mysore