Dinesh Karthik to work with England Lions as batting consultant during India tour

London [UK], January 10 : The former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik will spend nine days as a batting consultant with England Lions in the lead-up to their series against India A in Ahmedabad.
"India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik will join Neil Killeen's coaching team for the start of England Lions' stay in Ahmedabad," the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced in an official statement.
"England Men's Elite Pace Bowling Coach Neil Killeen is set to lead the England Lions on their upcoming tour of India, beginning later this week. The month-long series will feature three four-day matches against India A in Ahmedabad," the statement further read.
Killeen will head up a coaching team that includes people with local knowledge and experience to support the playing group's needs. Dinesh Karthik will join the squad for nine days near the start of the tour. Former England internationals Ian Bell and Graeme Swann will also contribute their expertise and understanding of playing in India, working alongside England full-time coaches Richard Dawson and Carl Hopkinson.
The two-day warm-up game will be played on January 12 and 13 and will be followed by a four-day first-class fixture from January 17-20, both taking place in Ahmedabad.
Lancashire batter Josh Bohannon will captain the squad after leading the County Championship Division One run-scoring last summer with 1,257 runs at an average of 59.85 with four centuries.
A 15-man strong England Lions side will fly to India for a month-long red-ball tour in early January that coincides with the beginning of England senior team's five-match Test series against the Asian giants from January 25.
"It's great to have such a strong coaching group supporting our players for what should be an exciting challenge versus India A. The group has a deep and diverse set of experiences and expertise. Neil Killeen did an excellent job leading the Lions in Sri Lanka last year and will assume head coach responsibilities again," England Men's Performance Director, Mo Bobat, said.
"Similarly, Ian Bell and Graeme Swann have spent time around our Lions environments over the past year and will be well-placed to continue supporting the players, many of whom they already know well. They both bring fantastic experiences to their respective coaching and mentoring roles," he added.
"Carl Hopkinson and Richard Dawson have extensive pathway experience and bring with them an England senior coaching perspective, and recent experience of Indian conditions. And it's fantastic to have Dinesh Karthik with us for a part of our prep period and leading into the first Test. I'm sure the lads will love spending time with him and benefiting from his experience of what it takes to be successful at Test level in India," Bobat added.
The squad will feature England's international-level players Brydon Carse, Alex Lees, Keaton Jennings, Ollie Stone, Matthew Potts and Matt Fisher. The Lions will be based in Ahmedabad for the whole tour and are scheduled to play India A in three four-day matches at the Narendra Modi Stadium. The tour begins with a two-day warm-up match against India A.
England Lions squad: Josh Bohannon (capt), Kasey Aldridge, Brydon Carse, Jack Carson, James Coles, Matt Fisher, Keaton Jennings, Tom Lawes, Alex Lees, Dan Mousley, Callum Parkinson, Matt Potts, Ollie Price, James Rew and Ollie Robinson.