John Hastings: 'Chris Rushworth deserves England chance'

John Hastings has admitted that he does not understand why Durham teammate Chris Rushworth has not been given a chance by the England selectors.

Rushworth is currently the County Championship's leading bowler with 64 wickets to his name in Division One, but the 29-year-old has not been recognised by England and Hastings believes that the reasons should be made clear.

"Rushy has been amazing for the last three or four years and I'd love to see him get a chance to have a crack at the England set-up," the Australian all-rounder told the Newcastle Chronicle.

"He'd be a fantastic asset, in the Vernon Philander mould. I'd love to see him get a chance at some stage. I'm not sure whether he will.

"For whatever reason players aren't perceived to fit the mould of international cricket but really given the chance they can do the job as well as anyone else."

Rushworth has taken 259 first-class wickets at an average of 23.11 since his debut in 2010.