Jamie Overton has returned to England’s Test squad for the first time in three years for the series opener against India as Jacob Bethell, Chris Woakes and Brydon Carse also return.
Overton has been a regular in the white-ball set-up in recent times but won his solitary Test cap against New Zealand in 2022, taking two wickets and hitting an unexpected 97 with the bat.
It remains to be seen whether the all-rounder will be fully fit to take the field at Headingley on June 20, having broken the little finger on his right hand during the recent ODIs against West Indies, but he has been given every chance to prove his fitness.
The England and Wales Cricket Board has said the 31-year-old will be “assessed and reviewed daily” by its medical team, who have already ruled Overton’s Surrey team-mate Gus Atkinson out of the match.
Atkinson tweaked his hamstring in the recent Test against Zimbabwe and has not been passed fit for the trip to Leeds.
Seamers
In his absence, England have further bolstered their pace bowling stocks with comebacks for fit-again pair Woakes and Carse. Both men missed the early part of the season with injury problems of their own, ruling them out of the opening Test of the summer.
Woakes, who faces the tourists with England Lions in Northampton over the next four days, could edge out Sam Cook, who retains his place after a quiet debut against Zimbabwe.
Carse, meanwhile, is in line for his first home cap after impressing over the winter in Pakistan and New Zealand.
A thornier selection dilemma concerns Bethell, the 21-year-old rising star who is back from IPL duty and placing pressure on the top three.
Jacob Bethell
Bethell confirmed his status as an outstanding prospect with a highly-accomplished series against the West Indies and has already shown an aptitude for the cut and thrust of the Test arena on the New Zealand tour.
Vice-captain Ollie Pope and Zak Crawley were both thought to be under pressure from his reintroduction but the pair reeled off matching hundreds against Zimbabwe and received glowing praise from skipper Ben Stokes in the aftermath.
Stokes had earlier been equally effusive about Bethell but clarified that his endorsement only guaranteed a return to the squad, not the side.
That is a decision that must now be taken as England ponder how to balance their options against an India side in a renewal phase following the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
England squad for first Test against India: B Stokes (c), S Bashir, J Bethell, H Brook, B Carse, S Cook, Z Crawley, B Duckett, J Overton, O Pope, J Root, J Smith (wkt), J Tongue, C Woakes.
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