Who Is James Coles? The Most Expensive Player Of Hundred Auction 2026 Who Earned Maiden England Call-Up

England have announced a 17-member squad for the five-match T20I series against India starting from July 1 at Chester-le-Street. The highlights of the squad are the inclusion of James Coles, who made headlines three months ago after being picked at £390,000 (approx. Rs. 4.8 crore) to become the most expensive player in the inaugural Men's Hundred auction.

England's national selector Marcus North hails Coles' performances in domestic cricket and leagues in the recent past and believes that he has earned the right for that call-up.

“James Coles is an exciting addition and has earned his place following his performances with the England Lions and in T20 competitions here and abroad during the past 12 months,” said North on Coles' selection.

“We have selected a larger squad to accommodate for the fact that this series will begin shortly after the Test series against New Zealand is due to conclude which allows us to be flexible,” North added.

The 22-year-old Coles is a right-handed middle-order batter who also offers left-arm spin. He represents Sussex in domestic cricket and has played 58 first-class, 24 List A and 71 T20 matches so far.

The all-rounder has an impressive T20 record, scoring 1,373 runs in 61 innings at a strike rate of 146.37 while also taking 59 wickets in 56 innings. Coles has emerged as one of the promising all-rounders in the English domestic circuit, and his performances in the SA20 are believed to have strengthened his case for a maiden call-up.

He is also part of the Southern Brave setup in The Hundred and has represented Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the SA20.

ECB earlier shifted the timings of those matches to played under lights by an hour early to suit the Indian viewers to gain more viewership. Now the first, third and fourth T20I will begin at 10:00 PM IST, while the second and fifth one, which are day matches, will begin at 7:00 PM IST.

The second T20I will be played on July 4 at Manchester, while the third will be at Nottingham on July 7. The fourth and the fifth T20Is will be played at Bristol and Southampton on July 9 and 11 respectively.

England Squad For India T20Is

Harry Brook (c), Rehan Ahmed, Jofra Archer, Sonny Baker, Tom Banton, Jacob Bethell, Jos Buttler (wk), Phil Salt (wk), James Coles, Jordan Cox (wk), Sam Curran, Liam Dawson, Will Jacks, Saqib Mahmood, Adil Rashid, Josh Tongue, Luke Wood