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Worcestershire seamer Josh Tongue will make his England debut in this week’s one-off Test against Ireland at Lord’s after being preferred to Chris Woakes.
The 25-year-old will join Stuart Broad and Matthew Potts in England’s seam attack with James Anderson (groin) and Ollie Robinson (ankle) not risked ahead of the Ashes from Friday June 16.
Tongue has picked up 11 wickets in four County Championship matches so far this season, including that of Australia’s Steve Smith lbw when Worcestershire played Sussex, with his overall first-class record reading 162 wickets in 47 games at an average of 26.04.
Thursday 1st June 10:00am
Speaking to Sky Sports News last week, Tongue – who missed 15 months of cricket between 2021 and 2022 due to a right shoulder problem which required two operations – said he would bring “pace, bounce and a bit of movement” if he made his Test debut.
Woakes was hoping to play his first Test since March 2022 – and first at home since September 2021 – after missing last summer’s fixtures due to a knee injury.
The 34-year-old has a stellar Test record at Lord’s, taking 27 wickets in five games at an average of 11.33 with a best of 6-17 in the 143-run win over Ireland four years ago, but will miss out this week.
Jonny Bairstow will keep wicket for England as he played his first Test since August
Jonny Bairstow will make his first Test appearance since August having returned to the XI in place of Ben Foakes as wicketkeeper-batter with the Yorkshireman due to bat at No 7.
Bairstow struck four hundreds in six Tests for England last summer, totalling 681 runs at an average of 75.66 and a strike rate of 96.59, before breaking his leg on a golf course last September.
Bairstow’s replacement, Harry Brook, began his Test career with four centuries in six games and has retained his spot in the side at No 5, with Foakes the unfortunate man to miss out.
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England’s Stuart Broad talks to Sky Sports News’ Rob Jones about the Bazball era and the upcoming Ashes series
After Foakes was omitted from the squad named a few weeks ago, England managing director of men’s cricket Rob Key said: “It is something we agonised over for quite some time.
“You’ve got two very good cricketers: Foakes, who has just done absolutely everything that has been asked of him, and Bairstow, who was one of the best batsmen in the world last year.
“It’s then how do you fit them both in? We couldn’t find a way to do that so we’ve ended up with Jonny keeping and batting at No 7.”
England XI to face Ireland at Lord’s
Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (captain), Jonny Bairstow (wicketkeeper), Stuart Broad, Matthew Potts, Josh Tongue, Jack Leach.
Watch England’s Test summer live on Sky Sports Cricket. The four-day fixture against Ireland takes place at Lord’s from Thursday with the Ashes series under way at Edgbaston from June 16.
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