ENGLAND HAD TO CALL IN THE 'SHIRE BRIGADE

DAVID GOWER has hailed a long overdue return to picking successful county players as Emilio Gay prepares to make his England debut at Lord's on Thursday.

- PHIL CAMPBELL

Rob Key, Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes have made a habit of left-field selections such as Shoaib Bashir, Josh Hull and Jacob Bethell in their time in charge, while county chiefs used their pre-season media days to hint at a “disconnect” between the Championship and the international set-up.

In the wake of their 4-1 Ashes humbling during the winter, however, head coach McCullum and Co returned to the practice of choosing in-form county players for their squad to face New Zealand, with Gay replacing the axed Zak Crawley (above) at the top of the order.

Former England skipper Gower said: “He [Gay] has earned it. He’s not just a flash in the pan; he’s been coming up for two to three years, long enough to know his own game.

“The good news is that the penny has dropped [for England’s management], and they had no option.

“The penny has dropped that county cricket is still relevant and that people shouldn't be excluded from the England team for the wrong reasons.