Worcestershire duo Ross Whiteley and Joe Clarke will complete a three week England Development Programme training camp in Dubai today and then switch their full focus to a five match T20 series against Pakistan 'A.'
Whiteley has started to attract some favourable publicity for type of the big-hitting which brought him 29 sixes in the NatWest T20 Blast for the Rapids last summer – the joint top tally along with Chris Gayle (Somerset) and Luke Wright (Sussex).
The 27-year-old was highlighted in the Sunday Telegraph as one of five players "looking to gatecrash squad for Indian showpiece in March" – a reference to the ICC World T20 tournament.
But Whiteley's immediate focus – after the England batting and spin bowling camp from November 11 to December 1 – will be on a warm-up game for the Lions against the UAE at the ICC Global Cricket Academy in Dubai on December 4 (Friday).
That precedes five T20 matches at the same venue against Pakistan 'A' – starting on December 7.
Wicket-keeper batsman Clarke is the youngest member of the squad at just 19 after his excellent form for Worcestershire during the second half of last season.
The other T20 fixtures will be staged on December 10, 11, 13 and 16 before the squad and coaches – including Worcestershire Director of Cricket Steve Rhodes – flies home on December 17 in time for the festive season.
But Rhodes and some of the players will be back out to the UAE in early January for five 50 over matches against the same opposition – although that squad has yet to be finalised.
