'Don't call up Ahmed to carry the drinks' - Thomas

Rehan Ahmed has played 21 white-ball matches for England [Getty Images] Leicestershire head coach Alfonso Thomas hopes England 12th man duties will not deny him the services of all-rounder Rehan Ahmed for the One-Day Cup final next month. Playing his first domestic List A game in five years, the 22-year-old hit 31 and then took a wicket with his first ball in the Foxes' semi-final win over Nottinghamshire on Sunday. Yet selection for England's T20 and ODI series with Sri Lanka could see Ahmed miss Leicestershire's final showdown with Middlesex at Trent Bridge on 20 September. "If he's playing for England that will obviously take first dibs," Thomas told BBC Radio Leicester. "The one thing we don't want to see is him getting picked for England, and carry the drinks on the Saturday when he could have been playing a game of cricket. "We'll cross that bridge when we get there, and we'll have conversations. If he knows he's not playing for England the day before or the day after I'm sure he'll be pushing to play as well." The 2023 winners booked their second One-Day Cup final spot in four years with a 23-run win over their East Midlands rivals, underpinned by a century from on-loan batter Hamza Shaikh. Ahmed went straight into the Foxes side just days after returning from a successful spell with Birmingham Phoenix in the Hundred. "I called him up on Tuesday and he kind of answered the call with 'I'm playing on Sunday' and I said 'that's fine, you're playing, you're batting at three'," said Thomas. "That's just the attitude he has. He's an absolute superstar in the changing room and I think I've got two of the most exciting talents in the country in him and Hamza Shaikh." It was a bruising afternoon for the Foxes who lost Ben Green (quad) and Steve Eskinazi (shoulder) during Notts' innings. Wicketkeeper Ben Cox was also forced off after being struck by Haseeb Hameed's bat but returned to the field after passing concussion tests. "It just shows what this team is all about, everyone pulled together, the whole squad. The 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th man kept helping the boys out, kept them going on the field," said Thomas. "From an all-round point of view, that was Leicester to a tee. "I think Coxy will be fine, Eski we'll wait and see what the doc says and the scans. It's going to be dependent on timescales for Green with the quad."