SIX Somerset players have been selected for England men's back-to-training group, as the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) steps up preparations for the prospective return of cricket behind closed doors.

Tom Banton, Dom Bess, Lewis Gregory, Jack Leach, Craig Overton and Jamie Overton take their place among the 55 players who are to return to training in anticipation of international cricket this summer - subject to UK government clearance.

Banton, Gregory and Leach were all selected for England over the winter, Bess and Leach were picked for the curtailed tour of Sri Lanka in the spring, and both Overtons were involved with the England Lions in Australia.

Today's ECB statement said: "The ECB continues to work closely with its county partners to provide a safe and efficient return to practice for players, and is grateful for the support of the counties in assisting with the coaching provision across this period.

"Squads for specific formats will be announced in due course."

ECB performance director Mo Bobat said: “It’s really pleasing to be in a position to have players returning to training, and a huge amount of work has been done by many to get us this far.

"The pool of players will give selectors strong options when it comes to selecting squads across formats further down the line, as we move closer to our aim of playing international cricket this summer.”

“We will need to continue to work closely with our medical team and government to ensure that our return to training and play activities are in line with best-practice guidelines.

"We’re also really grateful for the positive and collaborative response from our county colleagues who are doing a great job at facilitating coaching and support for the players.

"The fact that we can call on our network to support the national effort shows the strength of our system.”

Full England training group:

Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Jofra Archer (Sussex), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Tom Banton (Somerset), Dom Bess (Somerset), Sam Billings (Kent), James Bracey (Gloucestershire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Henry Brookes (Warwickshire), Pat Brown (Worcestershire), Rory Burns (Surrey), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Brydon Carse (Durham), Mason Crane (Hampshire), Zak Crawley (Kent), Sam Curran (Surrey), Tom Curran (Surrey), Liam Dawson (Hampshire), Joe Denly (Kent), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Laurie Evans (Sussex), Ben Foakes (Surrey), Richard Gleeson (Lancashire), Lewis Gregory (Somerset), Sam Hain (Warwickshire), Tom Helm (Middlesex), Will Jacks (Surrey), Keaton Jennings (Lancashire), Chris Jordan (Sussex), Tom Kohler-Cadmore (Yorkshire), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Jack Leach (Somerset), Liam Livingstone (Lancashire), Saqib Mahmood (Lancashire), Dawid Malan (Yorkshire), Eoin Morgan (Middlesex), Craig Overton (Somerset), Jamie Overton (Somerset), Matt Parkinson (Lancashire), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Ollie Robinson (Sussex), Joe Root (Yorkshire), Jason Roy (Surrey), Phil Salt (Sussex), Dom Sibley (Warwickshire), Ben Stokes (Durham), Olly Stone (Warwickshire), Reece Topley (Surrey), James Vince (Hampshire), Amar Virdi (Surrey), David Willey (Yorkshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham)