Mark Wood has been ruled out of England’s final two Tests against Sri Lanka, with 20-year-old Josh Hull called up in his place.
Wood, 34, pulled up with a thigh injury on day three of the first Test and played no part on Saturday, when England secured a five-wicket victory at Emirates Old Trafford.
A scan has ruled him out of the rest of the Test summer, but he is expected to be available for the tour of Pakistan in October.
Olly Stone was in the England squad for the first Test and is likely to take Wood’s place in the XI for the second Test at Lord’s, starting on Thursday.
Nottinghamshire's Stone, 30, is capable of high pace and has taken 10 wickets in his three Tests.
Leicestershire left-armer Hull earns his first call-up to a senior England squad despite playing only 10 first-class matches.
Standing at 6ft 7in, he took five wickets for England Lions in their tour game against the Sri Lankans earlier this month.
"It was about half nine last night when I got the call from Brendon McCullum. It's a very special moment," Hull told BBC Radio Leicester.
"It's come around pretty quickly. I didn't think it would happen this fast, but I am really excited to be joining them.
"I was happy with how I performed [for England Lions] but I never thought it would lead to a call this early. They've got Olly Stone there as the first replacement, so it will be a great opportunity to join up and be part of that environment."
Wood has been in electrifying form this summer, bowling at extreme pace in three Tests against West Indies and the series opener against Sri Lanka.
Since returning to the Test side during last summer's Ashes, he has established himself in England's first-choice XI.
Alongside Joe Root and Harry Brook, he was one of only three players handed a three-year central contract last year and is key to England's plans for the tour of Australia in 2025-26.
England's fast-bowling department has gone through significant upheaval in recent times.
Stuart Broad and James Anderson have both retired, while Ollie Robinson has been dropped.
Josh Tongue, Jamie Overton and Dillon Pennington are all injured, and Brydon Carse has served a ban for historical offences related to gambling.
England squad for final two Tests against Sri Lanka: Ollie Pope (captain), Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Josh Hull, Dan Lawrence, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes.
Comments
Post a Comment