An opener, spinner & fast bowlers - England's first Test decisions

Breaking news from the world of sport: An opener, spinner & fast bowlers - England's first Test decisionsImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Rehan Ahmed, left, Emilio Gay and Ollie Robinson are all contenders to be called up for the first England Test squad of the summerByStephan Shemilt Cricket CorrespondentPublished11 minutes agoEngland's attempt to rebuild from the rubble of the Ashes is about to begin. In the months since the horror show in Australia was completed in Sydney, there have been revelations about Harry Brook's nightclub punch-up, an Ashes review, a broken cheek for captain Ben Stokes, Brendon McCullum and Rob Key keeping their jobs and the impending arrival of Marcus North as the new national selector. Now a squad for the first Test against New Zealand on 4 June is due to be named, possibly as soon as Tuesday.

The players will gather for a camp in Loughborough on 25 May. In choosing their group to take on the stiff challenge of the Black Caps at Lord's, England will have to make decisions over their opening pair, spinner and pace bowlers. Zak Crawley might wonder why he is set to become an Ashes fall guy when so many around him have survived.

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Crawley can have no complaints. No opener in Test history has been given as many opportunities at the top of the order as Crawley's 104 innings and averaged less than his 30. His early season form for Kent has been wretched, with a top score of 44 in five matches.

Crawley's hack to be bowled in the second innings against Gloucestershire suggested a break from red-ball cricket might be no bad thing. Ben Duckett also had a disappointing Ashes, albeit with more credit in the bank than Crawley. England would be loathe to change both openers.

England rarely go back, and previous Test openers Dom Sibley and Haseeb Hameed have not made a compelling case to be recalled. New faces like Somerset's James Rew, Glamorgan's Asa Tribe and the Durham pair of Ben McKinney and Emilio Gay have emerged. With 12 first-class hundreds at the age of 22, left-hander Rew is probably the best red-ball batter in the country without a Test cap.

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A middle-order player by trade, England asked about the possibility of Rew opening for Somerset, which happened for the first time against Glamorgan over the weekend. Rew was out for four and nought. Failures happen to all batters, especially openers, but Rew might have to settle for a place as the reserve batter in the squad, if England decide they want cover.

Perhaps England's new opener comes down to a straight fight between McKinney and Gay. Both are specialist openers - former Northants man Gay is pushed down to number three for Durham. Both were on the England Lions trip to Australia during the winter.

At 26, Gay has done more to push his case in the early part of the season, with three centuries in the Championship. Yet 21-year-old McKinney has been on England's radar for some time. He caught the eye with a century for the Lions against a strong Australia A attack in Sydney at the beginning of last year.

The story has climbed to the top of the sports agenda, with fans and analysts following closely.