New Delhi: Pacer Matthew Potts has been named in Ollie Pope-led England's playing eleven for the first Test against Sri Lanka, starting at Old Trafford on Wednesday.
Harry Brook has been named vice-captain in the series which sees Ollie Pope as the stand-in skipper in Ben Stokes’ absence, who is ruled out of the series due to hamstring injury. Potts, whose last appearance in the longer format came in the one-off Test against Ireland in June 2023, gets into the eleven ahead of fellow pacer Ollie Stone and uncapped batter Jordan Cox. His inclusion comes at the expense of Stokes, who suffered a hamstring injury sustained during the recent Men's Hundred competition.
With Potts slotted at number nine, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes and Gus Atkinson will now play at six, seven and eight respectively, as England now have four fast-bowling options to cover up for Stokes’ absence. Middle-order batter Dan Lawrence, who last played a Test on the tour of West Indies in 2022, will open the batting alongside Ben Duckett following Zak Crawley being ruled out due to a broken finger sustained in England’s 3-0 series triumph over the West Indies.