By Graham Hardcastle

Gary Ballance has been called up to the England Lions squad, meaning he will only play in half of Yorkshire’s floodlit Championship match against Surrey at Headingley, starting on Monday.

Ballance will captain the Lions against South Africa’s Test team in Thursday’s four-day tour match at Worcester.

Initially, the ECB told Yorkshire they were making the in-form batsman unavailable for the entire pink ball Specsavers Division One clash before reconsidering their decision around lunchtime yesterday.

The selection is the strongest hint yet that Ballance is in line for a full Test recall when England face South Africa at Lord’s on July 6 having scored 815 Championship runs this season, including two centuries and a double hundred.

“It’s arguable whether Gary should have to prove himself in a Lions game,” said Yorkshire’s director of cricket Martyn Moxon.

“But we wish him well and hope that he does enough to convince the selectors that he’s ready to resume his Test career.”

Yorkshire will name a designated replacement for Ballance at the toss on Monday, potentially teenager Harry Brook, who is in a 13-man squad.

He will then come in for days three and four when vice captain Tim Bresnan will lead the county for the first time at first-team level.

Yorkshire’s disappointment has been tempered by the availability of Test duo Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root. They will play the entire match.

Ballance, who is colourblind, trialled special lenses to help improve his vision, but he is confident enough against the black seamed pink ball to do without.

No Surrey players have been considered for the Lions squad due to their involvement in Saturday’s Royal London one-day Cup final against Nottinghamshire.

National selector James Whitaker said: “Gary Ballance has had an excellent start to the season with Yorkshire, impressing with both his batting and his captaincy, and we wanted to give him this opportunity to lead the Lions against international opposition.”

Yorkshire squad v Surrey: Ballance (captain first two days), Bresnan (captain last two days), Bairstow w, Brook, Brooks, Coad, Handscomb, Lees, Lyth, Patterson, Rashid, Root, Sidebottom.