Sussex coach Mark Robinson will lead the England Lions squad on their tour of South Africa early next year.

The England selectors today announced two provisional 14-man Lions squads for the tour and Robinson, who enjoyed a stint in charge of the Lions in Sri Lanka in early 2014, will again lead the tour.

The squads will cover separate First Class and one-day legs of the tour which will include two four-day matches and five 50-over matches against South Africa ‘A’.

Jonathan Trott has been selected for England Lions', marking the first step in a possible full international comeback.

The 33-year-old batsman has not featured for England since his premature departure from last winter's Ashes tour.

An aborted return to county cricket with Warwickshire in April raised major doubts about his future, but after a second attempt he finished the season in good form.

That has persuaded the England and Wales Cricket Board that the time time is right to reintegrate him into their plans - albeit tentatively - with a place in the provisional 14-man group that will play two first-class matches against his native South Africa in January.

Yet that itself is a significant sign, with the Lions firmly viewed these days as the group from which the senior squad will select when places become available.

He has not been kept on for the five one-day matches that follow, suggesting he is now seen primarily as a candidate for the Test squad despite impressive limited-overs form at the tailend of the campaign.

ECB national selector James Whitaker said: ''Jonathan Trott's exceptional form and run scoring exploits for Warwickshire at the end of the summer has resulted in his selection for the first class fixtures at the beginning of the tour.''