England opener Zak Crawley registered a pair in the first Ashes Test in Perth
England have passed up the opportunity to send their first-choice batters to gain match practice in an Ashes tour game in Canberra, despite a dismal defeat in the first Test.
The tourists were beaten inside two days in Perth, meaning an 11-day break before the second Test – a day-nighter in Brisbane.
The extended gap meant the possibility of players joining England Lions' two-day pink-ball game against a Prime Minister's XI in the capital on Saturday and Sunday.
Instead, only pace bowlers Josh Tongue and Matthew Potts, and batter Jacob Bethell – a trio not involved in the first Test – will leave the Ashes squad to join the Lions.
