England have promoted Harry Brook to No 3 for the must-win third Ashes Test at Headingley, with Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood recalled and James Anderson and Josh Tongue rested.
Brook steps up from No 5 after vice-captain Ollie Pope, who had been batting at No 3, saw his series ended by a dislocated shoulder he suffered during last week’s 43-run defeat at Lord’s, a result which leaves England 2-0 down in the five-match contest.
Only one side in Ashes history – Don Bradman’s 1936/37 Australia team – have successfully overturned a 2-0 deficit to win the series.
Joe Root was also a potential candidate to move to Pope’s spot of first drop but will remain in his favoured position of No 4 for the Leeds Test, live on Sky Sports Cricket from Thursday (10am on air, 11am first ball).
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England XI for third Ashes Test
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow (wicketkeeper), Ben Stokes (captain), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson, Stuart Broad.
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Sir Geoffrey Boycott was left with his head in his hands after Brook’s first-innings dismissal at Lord’s last week
England have opted against selecting batter Dan Lawrence to replace Pope, with all-rounders Moeen and Woakes coming in to bolster the lower middle order.
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Wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow has jumped up two places to No 5 while skipper Ben Stokes will stay at No 6, with Moeen at No 7 and Woakes at No 8.
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Moeen’s inclusion gives England a frontline spinner with the 36-year-old sitting out at Lord’s as the hosts picked an all-seam attack of Anderson, Tongue, Stuart Broad, Ollie Robinson and Stokes, supported by Root’s part-time off-spin.
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Anderson, 40, is given a breather after taking three wickets at an average of 75.33 across the first two Tests, while Tongue – who bagged five wickets at Lord’s, including Steve Smith twice, after adding an injection of pace into the bowling unit – also makes way.
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Wood will provide the speed in Leeds as he makes his first Test appearance since the final game of the 3-0 sweep in Pakistan in December.
England wanted to select Wood at Lord’s but decided he needed extra time to reach full fitness with Tongue given an Ashes debut instead.
Woakes will play his first Test since the tour of West Indies in March 2022 and first at home since September 2021.
Stokes explains thinking behind team changes
“We are devastated for Popey (Ollie Pope). He’s been a huge part of what we have achieved for the past 18 months,” said Stokes.
“Dan (Lawrence) was in the squad as the next batter in but there were a few more things to consider about the team.
“The last week took a bit out of me a little bit and something I had to think of was what would be the best team to win this game if I didn’t bowl a ball? It doesn’t mean I am not going to bowl but that was a huge part of my thinking.”
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On the batting order, he added: “It was pretty simple for us. Brooky (Harry Brook) was in the squad last summer and the next player in. When you have got a player like him, you feel like he can slot in at any position. If something was to happen last summer from our one to six, Brooky would have come in at any position.
“We feel he’s the type of player that will take the responsibility and crack on with it. We want to keep Joe at No 4 because he’s a remarkable player. Jonny moving up to No 5 is to get him in the game earlier. The things he did last summer in that No 5 position is quite hard to look past, so the change in the batting order was quite simple.”
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Stokes says his team were very honest about bringing in Wood for Anderson, with the latter set to return for the fourth Test.
“We were very open and honest with each other that it’s going to be a tough ask to ask all the bowlers to play every game this summer,” he said.
“It’s a good chance for Jimmy to have a rest up and charge in from the Jimmy Anderson End at Old Trafford next week. It’s great to have Woody fit, he’s firing and ready to go this week, so looking forward to see him getting going.”
England XI for third Ashes Test
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Harry Brook, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow (wicketkeeper), Ben Stokes (captain), Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson, Stuart Broad.
Watch the third Ashes Test live on Sky Sports Cricket from Thursday. Coverage from Headingley starts at 10am ahead of the first ball at 11am. You can also stream the men’s and women’s Ashes series on NOW.
Sourse: skysports.com
