Yorkshire has confirmed that Harry Brook and Joe Root will join the team for their 2026 Rothesay County Championship match against Surrey on May 15. They will play as part of their training for the upcoming home Test series against New Zealand, starting June 4.
Root is scheduled to play in three County Championship matches for Yorkshire, while Brook will participate in two games ahead of a busy summer for England. The white-ball captain will compete in matches against Warwickshire and Surrey on May 8 and May 15, respectively.
Root, aged 35, will represent his home county in matches against Sussex, Somerset, and the mentioned game against Surrey at Headingley.
Yorkshire returned to Division One of the County Championship last season and placed seventh with 168 points from 14 matches. They will once again be led by England wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow as they start their 2026 campaign against newly-promoted Glamorgan at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on April 3.
Root and Brook are vital to England’s efforts to improve in Test Cricket after a tough Ashes series, which ended in a 4-1 defeat to Australia. Despite the setbacks, both players were the standout batters for England. Root scored 400 runs at an average of 44.44, including two centuries, while Brook managed 358 runs at an average close to 40.
The Ben Stokes-led team will have six Test matches during the home summer. In addition to the three-match series against New Zealand, they will also face Pakistan towards the end of August.
As of now, England is struggling in the 2025-27 World Test Championship, sitting seventh in the standings, just above Bangladesh and the West Indies.