England on Wednesday recalled batsman Dawid Malan and also added seamer Saqib Mahmood to their squad, apart from dropping struggling opener Dom Sibley, for the third Test against India.
England have kept injured pacer Mark Wood in the 15-man squad, hoping that he will be fit for the third Test starting August 25 at Leeds but left out Zak Crawley.
India are leading the five-match series 1-0 after winning the second Test at Lord’s by 151 runs.
Malan is returning to the Test squad for the first time in three years. He last played Test cricket in August 2018 in England’s victory over India at Edgbaston.
Sibley was one of four ducks in the England second innings at Lord’s.
The 25-year-old Sibley has been in a run of poor form for some time, averaging just 14 in the first two matches of this series and under 20 in Test cricket this year.
Headingley is now not only left-hander Malan’s home county ground but the Leeds venue is also where the 33-year-old made 199, in his last first-class match, for Yorkshire against Sussex in June.
Malan, however, normally bats no higher than number three.
And with the struggling Zak Crawley, who did not play at Lord’s, also dropped along with Sibley from a 15-man squad, Haseeb Hameed may now open alongside Rory Burns when the third Test starts a week on Wednesday.
Hameed returned to Test cricket at Lord’s with scores of nought and nine but did so batting first-wicket down rather than in his preferred position of opener.
England are already without the injured Stuart Broad, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, with star all-rounder Ben Stokes still unavailable due to mental health issues.
“Dawid Malan deserves his opportunity in the Test arena. He has a lot of experience across all formats and, if called upon, I am confident that he can come and do well on his home ground,” England head coach Chris Silverwood said.
“In the limited time he has played First-Class cricket this season, he has shown what he is capable of, scoring a highly accomplished 199 for Yorkshire against Sussex at Headingley in June.”
On Wood, the head coach said, “We are hopeful that Mark Wood will be fit after injuring his right shoulder in the first Test. Our medical team will be working with him each day. We will monitor where he is at when we get to Leeds.”
Saqib Mahmood is yet to make his Test debut. The 24-year-old was named as a reserve during England’s tour of Sri Lanka and India.
Spinner Jack Leach will return to Taunton, but remains on standby as back-up to Moeen Ali.
The England Test squad will report to its Leeds base on Sunday.
Squad: Joe Root (captain), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonathan Bairstow, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Haseeb Hameed, Dan Lawrence, Saqib Mahmood, Dawid Malan, Craig Overton, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson and Mark Wood.
Smith to play IPL
Melbourne: Star Australian batsman Steve Smith, who had been sidelined due to an elbow injury, is expected to make a return during the IPL, while limited overs team skipper Aaron Finch is on track to recover in time for the T20 World Cup.
Smith had given the tours of the Caribbean and Bangladesh a miss due to a left elbow injury, which had been troubling him since last year.
However, he has been recovering well with the 32-year-old batting in the nets for an hour at a time at New South Wales’ training and is set to be available for the resumption of the IPL, according to cricket.com.au.
Smith was acquired by Delhi Capitals for `2.2 crore in the auction earlier this year.