England name playing XI for 1st Test against Sri Lanka; Harry Brook named vice-captain
England have named their playing XI for the first Test against Sri Lanka, scheduled to be held at the Old Trafford Cricket Ground in Manchester from August 21 onwards. With Ben Stokes and Zak Crawley ruled out of the series due to injury, Ollie Pope will lead the side while Dan Lawrence will open the innings.
Since vice-captain Pope will be assuming the leadership responsibilities for the series, England have named a new deputy in the form of Harry Brook. As far as the team combination is concerned following the injury setbacks, England are going with five frontline bowlers without Stokes to provide the balance.
The four-pronged pace attack includes the trio of Mark Wood, Gus Atkinson, Chris Woakes along with Matthew Potts, who makes a return to the national side for the first time since June 2023. Shoaib Bashir continues to feature as the sole spinner in the playing XI.
The middle-order remains unchanged with the likes of Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, and glovesman Jamie Smith taking up the spots.
England playing XI for first Test against Sri Lanka
Dan Lawrence, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (captain), Joe Root, Harry Brook (vice-captain), Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Matthew Potts, Mark Wood, and Shoaib Bashir.
"I always try and take the game on and score runs. I think I fit the mould more in that aspect" - England batter Dan Lawrence
Dan Lawrence has a golden opportunity to make his case for the first time in the Bazball era, that too at the top of the order alongside the in-form Ben Duckett. The right-handed batter has been on the sidelines of the red-ball team for a significant while, with his last appearance coming during the tour of the West Indies in 2022.
He recently featured in The Hundred 2024 while leading the London Spirit, but could only guide the franchise to the bottom place with a sole win.
“I always try and take the game on and score runs. I think I fit the mould more in that aspect. When I heard about Zak the first thing I thought about was, ‘am I going to open?’ and I found out very quickly that I was so I’ve had had a couple of weeks to get my head around that and get some practice in," Lawrence said ahead of the series opener.
“Throughout my whole career I’ve played a certain brand of cricket and that has served me well so I’m just going to do the same thing. I’m just going to go out there and try to be as free as possible,” he added.
England will be looking to cast aside their injury issues and make the most of the momentum they have after a 3-0 whitewash against the West Indies. The hosts are currently placed seventh in the World Test Championship (WTC) standings.