England confirm new central contracts as three stars land deals for first time

The ECB have awarded 20 central contracts to England 's men's cricketers, with three players earning deals for the first time.

Sussex seamer Ollie Robinson has been rewarded with a central contract after an outstanding breakout summer, which saw him take 28 wickets at an average of 19.60 across five Tests.

Spinner Jack Leach and batter Dawid Malan also received central contracts for the first time, having previously held increment deals.

Liam Livingstone, who enjoyed an outstanding summer in white-ball cricket, has also received an increment contract for the first time.

Opener Dom Sibley is a notable omission from the list, losing his contract after getting dropped in the recent India Test series.

Interestingly, Sibley's replacement Haseeb Hameed is also not on the list.

The ECB have also announced a new structure for central contracts, with players being awarded a single deal instead of having them separated into red ball and white ball contracts.

The Managing Director of Men's Cricket, Ashley Giles, said: "I would like to congratulate all the players offered agreements for the coming year, particularly newcomers Jack Leach, Dawid Malan, and Ollie Robinson.

"Receiving your first central contract is a great moment in any player's career. They will all play a pivotal role in England's fortunes over the next 12 months."

England also awarded three pace bowling development contracts, which once again went to Saqib Mahmood, Craig Overton and Olly Stone.

Sam Billings is a surprising omission from the list, having featured regularly in England squads across all formats over the past year.

David Willey has also been left off the list, despite making England's squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup

Central contracts: Joe Root, Eoin Morgan, James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Sam Curran, Jack Leach, Dawid Malan, Moeen Ali, Ollie Pope, Adil Rashid, Ollie Robinson, Jason Roy, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood

Increment contracts: Dom Bess, Tom Curran, Chris Jordan, Liam Livingstone

Pace bowling development contracts : Saqib Mahmood, Craig Overton, Olly Stone

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