Jonny Bairstow slams the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the England team management, saying 'absolute joke' as they left out his Yorkshire teammate George Hill from the England Lions squad for their upcoming multi-format series against West Indies A.
George Hill was in great form in the County Championship for Yorkshire and was one of the strong contenders to be selected for the Lions squad. Hill, a pace bowling all-rounder who emerged as a regular run scorer and a wicket-taker, was previously a part of the England Lions squad, but was surprisingly snubbed by the selectors ahead of their matches against West Indies A.
Lions are scheduled to play three T20 matches and five 50-over games against West Indies A in St Kitts and Nevis in November. George Hill earned a call-up to the England Lions squad in May 2025, but the 25-year-old remained out of both T20 and One Day squads.
The out-of-favour keeper-batter, Jonny Bairstow, is furious over the selections. He raised his voice against the ECB and the national team management through a social media post.
Jonny Bairstow blasts ECB for not selecting George Hill
Bairstow, in his story, mentioned that his County teammate ticked all of the required boxes to be in either of the Lions' squads, taking 48 wickets and scoring 750 runs at an average of 34.
"What does [George Hill] have to do!!! Averages 18 with 48 wickets and 750 runs @ 34! England are hardly blessed with people that can swing the ball, bat well and be a jet in the field!" Jonny Bairstow wrote on Instagram. "Absolute joke!"
If anyone was wondering how Bairstow felt about the ECB after a hasty exit from the red and white ball set up , he’s posted this on his instagram story It is a rather baffling exemption in fairness to YJB t.co/KofXm2msOC
— JN Sport (@JNSports1) October 16, 2026Since making his First-Class debut, George Hill has grabbed attention on multiple occasions through his all-round performances. With a batting average of 31 in the format, Hill has claimed 178 wickets at an average of 21 runs.
While his numbers in the multi-day formats are eye-catching, the fast-bowling all-rounder has not been so impressive in the limited-overs games; the ECB named the England Lions squad for a limited-overs series against West Indies A.
George Hill in previous 5 matches for Yorkshire:
Yorkshire vs Nottinghamshire: 58 and 4, 2/37 and 1/10, September 24, 2026Yorkshire vs Somerset: 45 and 89, 0/27 and 1/18, September 15, 2026Yorkshire vs Essex: 40, 3/12 and 2/2, September 8, 2026.Yorkshire vs Surrey: 1 and 2, 2/17 and 4/52, September 2, 2026Yorkshire vs Leicestershire, 62, 0/5, August 27, 2026
Multiple central contracted players in England Lions squad
Thomas Rew, 18, has been named captain for the first time of the England Lions T20 squad, and for the 50-over squad, ECB has selected Dan Lawrence. Notably, Rew previously led the Young Lions to the final of the ICC Men’s U19s World Cup earlier this year.
Among the other Lions squad, Rehan Ahmed, Sam Cook and Lawrence are currently under the board's full Central Contracts. Lions will be the favourites to win both of the series against the West Indies A team.
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