England have continued with their norm of naming the playing XI early, as they finalised the squad that will take the field for the series opener against India at Headingley, beginning on Friday (June 20). While most of the selections are along expected lines, the home side had two decisions to make regarding the makeup of their playing XI.
Ollie Pope, whose spot has been under the scanner for a while now, has managed to retain his no.3 spot ahead of rookie Jacob Bethell. The latter has had an excellent start to his international career across formats, and being an all-round cricketer who can also bowl a bit, did suggest possible brownie points.. However, the selectors decided to persist with Pope who has also been considered a key part of England's leadership group, having also filled in as stand-in captain last summer when Ben Stokes was out of action.
He's a very, very important player in this team."
— Test Match Special (@bbctms) May 24, 2025
Ben Stokes on Ollie Pope's place in the side.#ENGvZIM #BBCCricket pic.twitter.com/pMTPhBAj6v
Pope endured a torrid 2024, averaging just 33 from 30 innings with only seven fifty-plus scores to his name. Even if you give him the allowance of having batted on tricky pitches, Pope has been underwhelming in the longest format. However, he has started 2025 on a high, cashing in against a listless Zimbabwe bowling attack in the one-off Test recently, registering a fluent 166 that might have secured his spot for now. Whether it stays that way for the entire India series is another matter, as five Tests are a long time to keep a struggling player in the XI.
also read
- The Oval Test: ‘Used vaseline to...’! Ex-Pak pacer makes ball-tampering claim about India’s win against England
- 'There's nothing like...' Rishi Sunak says he's 'gutted for England' after India's Test win
- VIDEO | Ind vs Eng: Mohammed Siraj pulls off Ronaldo’s ‘SIUUU’ celebration after last England wicket!
Meanwhile, the other selection call involved the third seamer, given that Chris Woakes was expected to lead the pace attack. In the absence of Jofra Archer and Mark Wood, Brydon Carse's seniority has risen, as he will ironically be playing his first Test match in England, having previously played all five Tests in foreign conditions. The dilemma regarding the third seamer was whether to opt for an attacking option in Josh Tongue or a bowling all-rounder in Jamie Overton to extend the batting depth.
Given the extra pace and steep bounce that Tongue can generate, he got the nod from the think tank, which has made the aggressive move in this aspect. Shoaib Bashir continues to be the lone specialist spinner, with Joe Root expected to be the other spin option, should Stokes require additional slow bowling.
England XI for Headingley Test
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.
