‘Ready to go’: Former Australian bowler Daniel Worrall emerges as a dark horse for England Test selection

Former South Australian seamer Daniel Worrall has emerged as a dark horse to represent England during next year’s Ashes tour following another prolific campaign with Surrey in the County Championship.

The 32-year-old, who played three ODIs for Australia in 2016, is currently the equal leading wicket-taker of this year’s County Championship with 34 scalps at 16.38 and an economy rate of 2.51.

Since changing allegiances and committing as a local English player in 2022, Worrall has helped Surrey win consecutive County Championship titles, while the south-east county is on track to secure a hat-trick of titles this year.

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“It’s something I wish I had done ten years ago, to be honest,” Worrall recently said of his decision to sign as a local player.

Born in Melbourne, Worrall made his first-class debut for South Australia in 2012, taking 195 Sheffield Shield wickets at 29.43 for the Redbacks and representing the Melbourne Stars and Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League.

The right-armed quick, who penned a three-year deal with Surrey ahead of the 2022 season, holds a British passport due to his family heritage with an English father and Irish mother.

Most wickets in the 2024 County Championship

34 – Daniel Worrall (Surrey)

34 – Jamie Porter (Essex)

32 – Oliver Hannon-Dalby (Warwickshire)

31 – Dillon Pennington (Nottinghamshire)

Worrall, who turns 33 next week, will be eligible to represent England when his three-year stand-down period ends in April 2025, recently declaring his ambitions to play Test cricket for his adopted country.

“I’m ready to go if I’m required,” Worrall said in April.

“I’ve learned in my time that as soon as you think that far ahead, you’re kidding yourself.

“When I started at Surrey I did so with the mindset that I had sort of another full career ahead of me. And I always had an ambition to play in England as an Englishman and have a career in England.”

If selected, Worrall would become the first cricketer to represent Australia and England at Test level since Albert Trott in 1899. After producing match-winning spells of 8-91 against Hampshire and 10-57 against Worcestershire this year, a national call-up is not beyond the realms of possibility.

Worrall’s bowling suits English conditions, but his prior experience on Australian decks with the Kookaburra could make him a genuine option for the 2025/26 Ashes series.

However, the Surrey paceman could find himself a fair way down the pecking order after England named young quicks Dillon Pennington and Gus Atkinson for the upcoming Test series against the West Indies, which gets underway next week.