For the opening Test against the West Indies at Lord’s on Wednesday, England will give debuts to Gus Atkinson and Jamie Smith of Surrey.
Offspinner Shoaib Bashir makes his home debut following three Tests in India at the beginning of the year, while Chris Woakes also makes a comeback to the starting XI for the first time since winning player of the series in the Ashes last summer.
With 12 white-ball cricket appearances for England, Atkinson was not utilized during the India trip but has been identified as a long-term pace option. At his most fluid, he registers speeds in the late 80s and early 90s mph. He was left out of this summer’s T20 World Cup, but a breakthrough summer in 2023 earned him a spot in the ODI World Cup. He has taken 14 County Championship wickets for Division One leader Surrey this season at an average of 29.78.
England XI to play West Indies•ESPNcricinfo Ltd
Smith will take over in goal as England progresses past Ben Foakes and Jonny Bairstow. The 23-year-old, who has been playing well in all formats, celebrated his first call-up by hitting his second century in first class this year. At 56.41 with a strike rate of 76.67, he has 677 Championship runs at the highest rate in Surrey’s history. After missing the India series due to the loss of his grandmother, Harry Brook returned to the No. 5 spot. He won two ODI appearances against Ireland at the conclusion of the previous summer and will start at No. 7.
Because Ben Stokes can now play between the two at six and is back to his regular all-rounder responsibilities, Bashir has been chosen. England showed their confidence in the spinner by choosing him in the squad ahead of Jack Leach, even though Bashir had to go on loan to Worcestershire in order to get first-team appearances and Leach was Somerset’s top spinner. Bashir had impressed with 17 wickets in India.
With James Anderson’s retirement looming, Woakes provides that balance as a batsman and is expected to be a constant this summer as England enters a period of transition.
England XI: 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Ollie Pope, 4 Joe Root, 5 Harry Brook, 6 Ben Stokes (capt) 7 Jamie Smith (wk), 8 Chris Woakes, 9 Gus Atkinson, 10 Shoaib Bashir, 11 James Anderson
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