England have named Warwickshire all-rounder Jacob Bethell in their squad for the three-Test tour of New Zealand. 

Bethell, who made his T20 and ODI debuts against Australia last month, replaces Jamie Smith who misses out due to paternity leave.

However, the 21-year-old has played just 20 County Championship games in his career, and has yet to make a first-class century.

He averaged 25.44 across those matches, with his highest total of 93 coming against Nottinghamshire early in the 2024 season.

Bethell made some impressive middle-order cameos with the bat against Australia in September, and also starred for the Birmingham Phoenix in The Hundred. 

Bethell also bowls left arm-spin - he struck four times across the five ODIs versus Australia - and will support the frontline trio of Shoaib Bashir, Jack Leach and Rehan Ahmed. 

His inclusion is the only change to the squad that suffered a 2-1 series defeat in Pakistan, with Jordan Cox poised for his Test bow as he deputises behind the stumps for Smith.

Vice-captain Ollie Pope keeps his place in the squad despite a difficult tour of Pakistan in which he averaged just 11, with a highest score of 29, across the three Tests.

The first Test in Christchurch begins on 27 November with matches in Wellington and Hamilton to follow in December.

England squad for Test series against New Zealand: Ben Stokes (captain), Rehan Ahmed, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Bryson Carse, Jordan Cox, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes.

Pakistan romped to a first Test series win on home soil since 2021 after coming from 1-0 down to clinch a series victory over England with a nine-wicket triumph in Rawalpindi. 

The tourists were again undone by Pakistan's spin bowlers, with Sajid Khan and Noman Ali seeing England all out for 112, their lowest ever total in Pakistan. 

England started 24-3 with Harry Brook and Joe Root at the crease, with the pair starting confidently before the former was caught by Mohammad Rizwan from Noman's delivery.

Ben Stokes (three) and Jamie Smith (three) followed shortly after, with Root then edging from another Noman delivery to all but England's slim hopes of a victory.

The tourists lost seven wickets for just 46 runs, with Noman (6-42) and Sajid (4-69) claiming all 10 dismissals in the second innings, with Pakistan set a target of just 36 to win. 

Jack Leach was able to grab the early wicket of Saim Ayub (eight), but Shan Masood (23) and Abdullah Shafique (five) steered the hosts to a memorable victory. 

England's next Test series starts in New Zealand at the end of November, while an almost entirely different squad begins a white-ball series in the West Indies next week. 

Data Debrief: Pakistan end home hoodoo

Having been beaten in six consecutive Tests and winless in 11 at home, Pakistan earned a memorable victory on home soil, spearheaded by Noman and Sajid. 

Sajid rightly picked up the Player of the Series award, taking 19 wickets which included two five-wicket hauls, while also scoring 72 runs with the bat. 

But Noman also played his part in the triumph. Along with Sajid, the pair took 39 of the 40 wickets in the final two Tests against England.

Ben Stokes insists his fitness issues are improving as he looks to play a greater role with the ball on a pitch that has drawn much attention ahead of England's third Test against Pakistan.

The England captain managed just 10 overs in the second Test defeat to Pakistan in Multan, in what was his first appearance in over two months after a troublesome hamstring issue.

Rawalpindi will host the series decider between the two nations, with England expecting lateral movement after recalling Rehan Ahmed, alongside fellow spinners Jack Leach and Shoaib Bashir.

Gus Atkinson also returns for the tourists ahead of Thursday's Test, forming a two-man seam attack with Stokes, who expects to feature more from a bowling aspect.

"It was good to get through it," said Stokes of the second Test. "I have put myself through my paces at training, bowled two spells.

"Coming in and being one of only two seamers, I'm fully confident that I'll be able to get more out of myself this week than I did last week."

Pakistan opted to reuse the same pitch in Multan for the second Test after England eased to victory in a run-laden opening meeting.

However, home spinners Noman Ali and Sajid Khan shared all 20 wickets as Pakistan levelled the three-match series, with the hosts' captain Shan Masood calling for further turn in Rawalpindi.

Pictures emerged this week of heaters, fans and windbreakers on the pitch, seemingly to appease Masood's request, though Stokes had no issues with the ground work.

"I've never been a groundsman, but you'd think a rake would assist the spin," said Stokes. "We can have a good guess which ends the Pakistan spinners will operate from.

"There's not too much grass to hold everything together. It will be interesting to see how it goes. It will be a pretty good wicket for the first couple of days, at least."

Spin will be no problem, too, considering the selection of Leach, Bashir and young leg-spinner Ahmed, who claimed a five-wicket haul on his Test debut in Pakistan in 2022.

"Leg-spinners have an amazing ability to break a game open," added Stokes. "Having his batting ability lower down the order is also a massive bonus.

"The way Leach and Bashir have bowled has been fantastic in these first two Tests. Adding Rehan's free spirit and desperation to change the game every time he's got the ball in his hand is a massive bonus for us this week."

Pakistan's Kamran Ghulam was in a defiant mood on debut as he frustrated England on day one of the second Test.

After their collapse in the second innings following England's show of force with the bat in Multan last week, Pakistan were looking for a response on Tuesday.

And on the same pitch as the first Test, which offered even less for the seamers but some joy for the spinners, Ghulam starred with a sublime knock of 118 as Pakistan reached stumps on 259-5.

Abdullah Shafique went for seven in the eighth over before Ghulam put on a third-wicket partnership of 149 with Saim Ayub, who made 77 before he was sent packing by Matthew Potts.

Shan Masood fell to Jack Leach (2-92), while Brydon Carse (1-14) picked up the wicket of Saud Shakeel before Ghulam was eventually bowled by Shoaib Bashir (1-66).

England captain Ben Stokes bowled five overs on his return but will be hoping for more luck on day two, with Mohammad Rizwan (37 not out) and Salman Agha (five not out) at the crease.

Data Debrief: Pakistan bounce back

England are undefeated in eight Tests against Pakistan (W6 D2), while the hosts have lost their last six matches in the longest format.

Another loss would be their longest losing run in Tests, but with Ghulam leading the way, they have made a great start in avoiding that fate.

There is plenty of time to go for England, who are hunting their first back-to-back victories in away Test matches since February 2023.

Brendon McCullum admitted it would be “slightly mad” if the progress Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir have made on England’s tour of India was stymied by a lack of opportunities at county level.

The spinning duo were uncapped at the start of the trip and held modest first-class records, albeit from small sample sizes, but Hartley is the series’ leading wicket-taker with 20 dismissals in four Tests and Bashir took a maiden professional five-for in Ranchi.

But Lancashire signing Australia star Nathan Lyon this summer places a question mark over how much game time Hartley will get and Bashir is second choice at Somerset to Jack Leach, who will have surgery on a knee injury which ended his tour early and allowed the rookies to shine on the international stage.

While McCullum acknowledged Lancashire and Somerset have their own interests to consider, England’s head coach hopes Hartley, 24, and Bashir, 20, will not fade away in the months ahead.

“We’ve got to keep trying to get cricket into them,” McCullum said. “Whatever opportunity we can we’ll try and give it to them because there’s two guys there more than good enough for international cricket.

“They’re tough characters. We’ve seen both of them have big hearts. It doesn’t get any harder than it is right now and they’ve both stood up and performed so we’ve just to keep giving both of them chances.

“It will be a slight frustration of ours if they weren’t given opportunities at county level. There’s a very real possibility that might be the case.

“But without wanting to dictate to counties because they have their own agendas, when you see performances like we have out of those two bowlers throughout the series, I think you’d be slightly mad if you didn’t give them more opportunities in county cricket.”

England losing by five wickets in Ranchi leaves them 3-1 down with just the final Test in Dharamshala, starting Thursday week, with McCullum suffering the first series defeat of his reign.

There have been just four wins in their last 11 Tests but McCullum is convinced England are a superior team than the one he inherited in May 2022, which had triumphed just once in their previous 17 matches.

“We weren’t quite good enough when it mattered – or India were better, to be honest, than us being not quite good enough,” McCullum said.

“We’ve lost this series and we didn’t win the Ashes (last year) but we’re a better cricket team than we were 18 months ago and we’ve got opportunity in the next 18 months to do some pretty special s***.

“Time on the tools, experience and just keep chiselling away at any of those rough edges which creep up every now and then, which is natural, and we’ll get there eventually.”

McCullum confirmed Jonny Bairstow will play in his 100th Test next week, despite not reaching 40 in the series, but there is scrutiny over seamer Ollie Robinson following a disappointing return to action.

Robinson registered an important fifty in his first competitive appearance since July last year but while pace has never been his biggest asset, he struggled to reach 80mph on the speed gun and sent down six no-balls – taking his career tally to 77, which is one more than his haul of wickets in 20 Tests.

His drop of Dhruv Jurel was a key moment, allowing India to move to within 46 of England’s total after the first innings, while Robinson was not called upon to bowl as the hosts chased 192 to win by five wickets on Monday.

McCullum explained Robinson, who has an impressive Test average of 22.92, felt a twinge in his back, which he has struggled with in the past.

“Everything he did leading into the Test match suggested we’d see not just the Ollie Robinson we’d seen previously but a better version of it,” McCullum added.

“He’s not just as disappointed as everyone else, he’s the most disappointed out of everyone. It’s just sport right? You have great expectations and sometimes you’re not quite able to deliver.”

Shoaib Bashir took top billing on his recall with a career-best four for 84 as England seized control of the fourth Test against India in Ranchi.

After England were all out for 353 on the second morning, as Joe Root finished unbeaten on 122, Bashir was entrusted at one end following a short burst from the seamers and the decision paid rich dividends.

In his eighth first-class match and second Test, Bashir was solely responsible for India lurching from 86 for one to 161 for five, which included the wicket of the in-form Yashasvi Jaiswal.

The India opener has been a constant thorn in England’s side and top-scored with 73, but he was not the only member of his side to fall victim to variable bounce as the hosts went to stumps on 219 for seven, trailing by 134 runs.

Tom Hartley, curiously held back until the 32nd over, chipped in with two for 47 but this was Bashir’s day, as the 20-year-old vindicated his selection after being omitted for England’s defeat in Rajkot.

He came into this series with a first-class bowling average of 67 but is making sure England are not feeling the absence of senior spinner Jack Leach, who announced on Saturday he will undergo surgery on a knee injury which cut short his tour.

Bashir, who took four wickets in the second Test in Visakhapatnam, bowled 31 consecutive overs from one end and exploited helpful conditions as England, trailing 2-1 in the five-match series, put India under the pump.

Days after Ben Stokes admitted he would like to see umpire’s call abolished, England had three on-field decisions upheld as Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar and Ravichandran Ashwin reviewed their dismissals in vain.

There was no debating the breakthrough as James Anderson claimed Test wicket 697 after a flat-footed Rohit Sharma nicked through to Ben Foakes but Ollie Robinson was luckless, twice drawing the outside edge of Jaiswal either side of lunch.

The first dropped clearly short of Zak Crawley before disappearing for Jaiswal’s first four, but Foakes and England were convinced the second chance was taken cleanly and were momentarily stunned when third umpire Joel Wilson ruled against them, with Stokes cupping his hands to his mouth in shock.

Jaiswal earlier punished Anderson then Robinson for over-pitching with back-to-back fours and showed his range by shimmying down to Bashir and bludgeoning over long-on – his 23rd six of the series.

It was a rare misstep from Bashir, introduced as early as the ninth over just before lunch, as he settled into a mammoth spell, offering initial control and refusing to allow Jaiswal or Gill to dominate before ending an 82-run stand just as England looked to be running short of ideas.

Gill departed for 38 after being rapped on the front pad, beaten on the inside edge and playing down the wrong line, and a decent stride failed to save him on review as he was umpire’s call on impact.

It was just the second lbw of Bashir’s professional career and he did not have to wait long for his third as Patidar was out for 17, with a referral showing the ball would have clipped leg stump.

Ravindra Jadeja took successive sixes off fellow left-arm spinner Hartley, but these were his only scoring shots as he was deceived by extra bounce from Bashir’s top-spinner and plopped a simple bat-pad chance to Ollie Pope in the afternoon gloom.

Jaiswal launched a brief counteroffensive after tea with a late cut and inside-out drive over extra cover for fours off Bashir, who had his revenge and the wicket England prized most when one delivery stayed low and squirted off the toe-end of the opener’s bat before crashing into the stumps.

With the floodlights on, Hartley got into the act, drawing Sarfaraz Khan’s edge which was spectacularly caught by Root, diving to his left at slip, while Ashwin was lbw to a grubber and another India review went England’s way because of the on-field call.

Dhruv Jurel (30 not out) and Kuldeep Yadav (17no) put on an unbroken 42 but the momentum is firmly with the tourists on a tricky pitch.

England earlier added 49 to their overnight score, largely thanks to Robinson, who registered his maiden Test fifty and took his stand with Root to 102 before a reverse sweep brushed his glove en route to Jurel.

Robinson’s departure for 58 was the start of England losing their last three wickets for six runs in 17 balls, with Root left stranded having added just 16 to his day one total.

England captain Ben Stokes downplayed his landmark appearance against India in Rajkot this week, insisting that joining the prestigious 100 Test club was “just a number”.

Stokes is set to become the 16th Englishman to three figures on Thursday a little over a decade on from his Adelaide debut, where he memorably had a testy exchange with Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin.

That combative nature has been a constant in a career of stratospheric highs and crushing lows, but he is naturally averse to celebrating personal milestones, as evidenced most acutely at Headingley in 2019.

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On that occasion, Stokes barely acknowledged his hundred and only celebrated after hauling England to a famous victory and he stayed true to type when asked to talk up his 100th Test match.

“I guess it’s a sign of longevity,” he said, almost apologetically. “It’s just a number. Every Test is just as important as the next one. Then there’s the next one, which will be 101 – it’s just one more.

“I don’t want it to sound like I’m not thankful for the opportunities I’ve had. There will be a time when I can (reflect on what he has achieved) a bit more.

“But milestones and stuff like that – it’s not done until it’s done.

“While I’m still playing and wanting to achieve a lot, driving the team, giving individuals what I think is the best platform for them to be successful is where all my thoughts are at the moment.”

Another character trait that has been evident in Stokes the captain is his eagerness to roll the dice and risk defeat in pursuit of victory, largely paying off with six of the former and 14 of the latter.

He is therefore highly unlikely to find himself in the same situation Sir Alastair Cook did in England’s last visit to the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in November 2016, when the tourists received some criticism for declaring too late and setting India 310 to win in a minimum of 49 overs.

With this series deadlocked at 1-1, the temptation could be to avoid defeat at all costs after losing last time out but Stokes was having none of it.

“I don’t get that much pleasure out of a draw,” Stokes said. “I’d much rather lose trying to win. But not winning doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. Everything is just aimed towards what can we do.

“Losing always sucks but we’ve lost all (six) games trying to win them. We’ll never go to the grave not knowing if we could have done something a bit different.”

Stokes’ immediate thoughts are on whether to stick with James Anderson and a trio of callow spinners or reintroduce Mark Wood and go with two specialist fast bowlers for the first time on this tour of India.

While Wood was wicketless in the win at Hyderabad and made way for Anderson in the Visakhapatnam defeat, his express pace offers an extra dimension on a pitch renowned for being batter-friendly.

“If we were to go with two seamers the reasons why we would look at Jimmy and Woody would be I just like to have a point of difference,” Stokes said. “And India is never a three-seamer option.”

Even though Jack Leach is out of the last three Tests, Stokes will stick to his pledge not to bowl in this series following surgery on a longstanding left knee injury 11 weeks ago.

Stokes, who last bowled competitively in July last year, sent down three overs in training on Tuesday morning at what he estimated was about 70 per cent intensity.

“It’s little and often now,” the 32-year-old said. “We don’t have a plan with where I go with my intensity. It’s just how I feel at the time, but also not getting too far ahead. It was another step forward.

“But I’ve pinky promised my physio I won’t be loosening up to bowl even if everything is feeling well because that would just be a risk that’s not worth it.”

Jack Leach has been ruled out of the rest of England’s Test tour of India with a left knee injury.

The 32-year-old picked up the injury during England’s first Test victory in Hyderabad, where he was forced to play a restricted role and subsequently missed the second Test in Vizag.

His absence saw Somerset team-mate Shoaib Bashir come into the side, where he picked up four wickets on his international debut.

Bashir was joined by Rehan Ahmed and Tom Hartley in England’s spin attack, with the trio only holding three caps between them going into the second Test.

The series resumes in Rajkot on Thursday tied at 1-1 following India’s 106-run victory in Vizag.

England will not be calling up a replacement and Leach will now return home.

In a statement, the England and Wales Cricket Board said: “He will fly home from Abu Dhabi in the next 24 hours, where the England team have been staying ahead of the third Test in Rajkot, which starts on Thursday.

“Leach will work closely with the England and Somerset medical teams in respect of his rehabilitation.”

Jack Leach has been ruled out of England’s second Test against India, pushing Somerset team-mate Shoaib Bashir one step closer to an international debut.

England will settle on their XI for Friday’s match in Visakhapatnam after taking a final look at the pitch, but will need to rethink in the absence of their senior spinner.

The 32-year-old was in visible discomfort for most of England’s remarkable victory in the first Test, where he played a restricted role, and finally gave in to the inevitable after sitting out Wednesday’s training session with bruising and swelling on his left knee.

“He’s ruled out of the second Test. Unfortunately the knock he took resulted in a haematoma,” said captain Ben Stokes, who hailed Leach as a “warrior” last week for struggling though the series-opener.

“It’s a big shame for us and a big shame for him. It’s something we’re assessing every day but the medical team have taken over on that so hopefully it’s not something too serious that keeps him out for longer.”

While Leach was an onlooker at nets, 20-year-old Bashir joined in for the first time since complications over his visa application were resolved.

Bashir racked up 10,000 unwanted air miles shuttling between Abu Dhabi, London and Hyderabad, where he arrived just in time to take in the final day of England’s audacious victory, and is now in the selection mix.

Record wicket-taker James Anderson is pushing hard for a recall, alongside or instead of fellow seamer Mark Wood, while Rehan Ahmed’s role could come into question after a quiet game with the ball.

But the fact that Bashir, who has a gossamer-thin first-class record of 10 wickets in six games at an average of 67, is being discussed shows just how far Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum are willing to push the envelope.

The success of the inexperienced Tom Hartley on debut last week, taking a second-innings seven-for to send his side 1-0 up, can only have emboldened Stokes.

It was him who first floated the youngster’s name six months ago after watching a video montage of Bashir bowling to former England captain Sir Alastair Cook on his first Somerset appearance.

“To be perfectly honest, our training camp in Abu Dhabi was the first real live look I got at Bash,” Stokes said.

“The first time I saw him was on Twitter. I think the County Championship put a little clip together of him bowling against Sir Alastair.

“I just saw something. With the height he bowled from, it was very obvious that he put a lot of action, a lot of revolutions, on the ball.

“I’m in a WhatsApp group with (director of cricket) Rob Key and Baz (McCullum). So I actually did forward the clip on and said, ‘Have a look at this, this could be something we could work with on our India tour’. It just progressed from there.”

Stokes realises how raw Bashir is and takes the responsibility of managing his fast-tracking to the international arena seriously.

“He’s a young kid who’s finding his way… I was about to say he’s finding his way in first-class cricket, but he’s on a Test tour now,” he said.

“He’s a real sponge at the moment and I think that’s because of how young he is. He’s got an unbelievable coach here in Jeetan Patel and he’s also got someone in Jack leach who is a massive help, particularly with their Somerset connection.

“If he was to play on this tour, the great thing he has going for him is what is there to lose? That is how I will be thinking about it if he gets the chance to play.

“Just make sure I give him the best experience I possibly can because you only play your first Test once. If he does play then I’ll be trying to make it as fun and enjoyable for him as I can.”

Jack Leach looks increasingly doubtful for England’s second Test in India after sitting out the first training session in Visakhapatnam.

Leach did not take part in the tourists’ net practice on Wednesday, joining his team-mates at the ground solely to receive treatment on his left knee injury.

The Somerset spinner picked up the problem when he jarred his leg while fielding on the first day of England’s remarkable victory in the series opener and later aggravated it as he tried to play through the pain.

Despite suffering from bad bruising and swelling around the joint, he continued to play a reduced role in Hyderabad, contributing the wicket of Shreyas Iyer as the tourists pressed for the win.

But he was visibly limping as he watched the squad go through their paces ahead of Friday’s clash and would need to rally quickly to have any chance of being considered.

Captain Ben Stokes hailed Leach as a “warrior” for battling through last week and opener batter Zak Crawley is not ruling out an unexpected recovery.

“He’s a tough kid, Leachy, so I’m not sure. You never know with Jack,” he said.

“You can never really write him off. We’ll see how he pulls up in a couple of days.”

While his injury looks set to scotch head coach Brendon McCullum’s mischievous suggestion that England could all of their spinners in a seam-free attack, it does raise the chances of a debut for his Taunton team-mate Shoaib Bashir.

The 20-year-old, who has just six first-class caps and 10 career wickets to his name, was a belated arrival in India after visa complications related to his Pakistani heritage forced him to return home to London.

But, after banking some unwanted air miles, he is back with the squad and played a full part in training. Rehan Ahmed, the leg-spinning all-rounder, sat out the optional session but is understood to be fully fit.

Despite Bashir’s gossamer-thin track record, he impressed during the pre-series training camp in Abu Dhabi. Tom Hartley’s nine wickets on debut in Hyderabad, meanwhile, are unlikely to deter England from backing another hunch.

“He’s a great kid. He’s got a lot about him,” Crawley said.

“He knows what he is trying to do with his bowling and he backs himself. I like that and feel like if he got his chance in this series he would go well.”

India have had injury problems of their own, losing the world’s number one all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul after the first Test.

Their most glaring absentee remains Virat Kohli, who top-scored with 167 when England played their only previous Test in Visakhapatnam seven years ago, and remains unavailable due to personal reasons.

There is a growing feeling that the wind is blowing in England’s direction but Crawley, who was part of the side who went from 1-0 up to a 3-1 defeat here in 2021, is keen to not get carried away.

“Whoever they pick, they’re going to be a very good team,” he said. “They’re a top side in their own conditions.

“There’s four games left and we need to stick to what we do well. Hopefully the results come from there but we’re not getting too far ahead of ourselves.

“We’re preparing for this one like it’s the first game, we’re staying where our feet are and we’ll see where that takes us.”

England have gone all in on spin for their first Test in India, handing Tom Hartley a debut alongside Jack Leach and Rehan Ahmed in a major selection gamble.

Clearly expecting more of the lavish turn that saw them blown away on their previous visit in 2021, the tourists have picked all three of their specialist slow bowlers in Hyderabad and will also utilise Joe Root’s off-breaks as an additional option.

With captain Ben Stokes unable to bowl after knee surgery, they have settled on Mark Wood as the solitary pace bowler, meaning record wicket-taker James Anderson sits out.

England are placing a lot of trust in Wood’s fitness, with their fastest bowler bullish about his fitness despite a history of injury problems.

England last named a trio of frontline spinners in their 3-0 whitewash of Sri Lanka in 2018, when Leach was the junior man to the more established pair of Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid, but Stokes was on hand then as an all-rounder.

They have not restricted themselves to just one seamer in recent memory, but their commitment to doing things differently in the ‘Bazball’ era remains unchecked.

Within the camp they do not see this as a rogue move, instead viewing it as a willingness to react to conditions.

“I don’t necessarily think it’s bold or brave, it’s just me and Baz (head coach Brendon McCullum) looking at the wicket and picking the XI that we think will give us the best chance,” Stokes said.

“You have always got to think that the ball is going to turn in India, but you don’t want to go in with any pre-conceived ideas. We have to adapt to whatever we have presented in front of us, with bat and ball.

“It’s just being true to yourself, making selections and decisions. It comes easier as I’ve done more of this… If I think the decision is best for the team, then it’s probably the right one.

“India are an absolute beast in their home conditions, there’s no doubt about that. But that presents us with an opportunity. This team loves opportunities. We take opportunity head on and we run towards it – we don’t back away from from anything.”

Hartley comes into the reckoning despite a slim red-ball record with Lancashire. He has played 82 T20s compared to just 20 first-class games but was identified several months ago for his height, lively speed through the air and skiddy trajectory.

All of those are factors England feel are better suited to a Test match in India than a regulation county championship pitch, but the 24-year-old remains an unknown quantity.

“It’s very exciting for Tom to make his Test debut,” said Stokes.

“I’m looking forward to seeing him out there and captaining him. He’s been very impressive in the build-up in Abu Dhabi. He bowls at a very difficult pace to be able to handle out here and he’s someone who gets a lot of natural variation. In India, that is sometimes the hardest thing to face.”

Ahmed wins his second cap 13 months after becoming England’s youngest ever men’s Test cricketer in Karachi – an occasion that saw him claim a five-wicket haul in the second innings.

Despite going it alone, Wood has been told not to expect to carry a huge workload. Instead, he has been asked to use his express speed to make big contributions in brief cameos.

“What Woody brings with his high pace makes him a real impact bowler,” said Stokes.

“He’s a weapon we can use in short, sharp spells. We’ve already said that to him – bowl as fast as you can in short periods. There’s no worries about thinking about long spells. That’s how I envision using Woody before we’ve bowled a ball.”

Tom Hartley will make his Test debut as one of three spinners as England took a major selection gamble for their series opener against India in Hyderabad.

Hartley, the Lancashire left-armer, joins the established Jack Leach and teenage leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed in an attack that suggests the tourists expect lavish turn.

Mark Wood has been picked as the only seam bowler in the side, meaning England’s record wicket-taker James Anderson sits out.

With Wood operating best in short, rapid bursts, England are ready to embrace an entirely different rhythm of cricket. Joe Root’s off-breaks are also likely to feature heavily and Stokes has even suggested he could open the bowling with the part-timer.

Ben Foakes returns as wicketkeeper, with Jonny Bairstow reverting to a specialist batting role at number five.

Tom Hartley accepts England have taken a “bit of a punt” in selecting him for a daunting trip to India but the slow left-armer believes he has the tools to thrive.

England’s focus was not on Hartley’s 19 wickets at a modest 44.84 apiece in last year’s LV= Insurance County Championship when they named him in their squad for the upcoming five-match Test series.

Instead, they are banking on Hartley harnessing India’s spinning surfaces in a manner comparable to Ravindra Jadeja and especially Axar Patel, who was England’s nemesis on their last Test tour in 2021.

Hartley’s only previous excursion to India was with Lancashire four years ago although an England Lions training camp in Abu Dhabi a couple of months ago has given him some confidence for the weeks ahead.

“With the conditions being completely different to English conditions, they’ve really analysed what has done well in India and what will do well,” the 24-year-old told the PA news agency.

“It’s nice to see people recognise that I might be the bowler to go out in India and do well. When people have confidence in you like that, it’s fantastic.

“I just feel all that confidence has been passed on to me and I can’t wait to go out there. My stats might not be the best in championship cricket but I bowl very similar to Axar and Jadeja.

“They’re taking a bit of a punt but I feel like I’ve proved myself in the training camps that I’ve been on and I deserve to get a go.”

Hartley suspects he will have a supplementary role if he is given the nod for a series which begins in Hyderabad on January 25, with only Jack Leach among England’s four main spinners capped more than once.

But Hartley, whose international career has comprised of just two ODI appearances against Ireland last year, has given plenty of consideration on how he intends to bowl to the likes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

“Although I haven’t played much cricket out there, I’m going with a feeling of what I need to bowl,” he said. “I see a lot of similarities between my white-ball bowling here and red-ball bowling out there.

“I feel like the pace, the revs you want to put on it and the shape of the ball will be very similar to white-ball areas – you just want to bowl that little bit fuller.

“As much as Indian’s batters are good players of spin, the conditions should be in my favour. You’ve just got to try not to over-complicate things and keep things simple and keep the stumps in play.

“India’s spinners are great but can we perform as well as them? There will be a lot of fight in us. I won’t be playing as a frontline spinner, so there won’t be tons of pressure on me.”

Hartley, who could also extract extra bounce from a 6ft 4in frame, has been taking on board advice from Graeme Swann, revealing the former England spinner’s straightforward approach is a breath of fresh air.

As for whether he has a similar outgoing demeanour as a spinner who took 255 wickets in 60 Tests and is now a consultant bowling coach, Hartley prefers to keep his cool but is not frightened to speak up.

“Once I’m in a battle or someone’s p*****g me off a bit, I’m not afraid to say what I want to say,” Hartley added, ahead of linking up with England on Thursday for a 11-day training camp in Abu Dhabi.

“That really has to be in the moment sort of feel but I’ve done a bit of both and found that just staying as relaxed as possible and having as little emotion as possible works for me.”

England find themselves without a first-choice spinner just days away from the start of the Ashes, after Jack Leach was diagnosed with a stress fracture of the lower back.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the runners and riders to step into the Somerset man’s shoes.

Rehan Ahmed

Became England’s youngest ever Test debutant when he was thrust into the spotlight against Pakistan in December. Aged just 18 and 126 days when he took the field in Karachi, he claimed five for 48 in the second innings and two more in the first. Has impressed more with the bat than the ball for Leicestershire in this season’s LV= Insurance County Championship, with only six wickets in as many games at an average of 54.16.

Moeen Ali

A long shot, but one for the romantics. Moeen, 35, has bundles of experience in England whites, with 195 Test wickets and plenty of memorable moments. Currently retired from red-ball cricket, which appears a reasonable stumbling block, but Brendon McCullum was close to tempting him back in Pakistan last winter and might be tempted to reopen discussions over one last mission.

Will Jacks

Another debutant in Pakistan, the Surrey man is still known best for his aggressive batting and top-order exploits against the white ball. Yet, he will be an attractive option for  McCullum and Ben Stokes given his attacking approach to the game. His off-breaks have impressed head coach Gareth Batty, himself a former England spinner, and he would be an explosive lower-order option with the bat.

Dom Bess

Knows the ropes with 14 Test caps and 36 wickets, and made his name as Leach’s understudy at Taunton. Lost confidence during his last stint in the international set-up and there is a feeling his game has plateaued somewhat since moving to Yorkshire. Nine wickets in four Division Two outings this term.

Liam Dawson

A dependable character with more than 15 years of first-class experience. A regular England squad man across formats, but has just three Test appearances to his name. By no means a mystery spinner, but perhaps the closest like-for-like replacement for Leach. A solid left-armer who can hold an end and bowl lengthy spells, he could provide handy respite for the seam attack. An under-rated batter and fielder, too.

Jack Carson

The 22-year-old Northern Irishman is well thought of and on recent form must have inched ahead of fellow England Lions tourist Liam Patterson-White, who has struggled to make an impact for Nottinghamshire this summer. Dismissed Cheteshwar Pujara twice during a county select XI game against India in 2021 and later enjoyed a one-on-one session with the great Virat Kohli. Still raw.

England’s Ashes preparation has been rocked after spinner Jack Leach was ruled out of the series with a back stress fracture.

Leach claimed four scalps during England’s 10-wicket victory over Ireland at Lord’s this week, but developed low back symptoms during the match.

A subsequent scan on Sunday revealed a stress fracture in the lumbar region of the spine, which will rule him out of all five Ashes Tests.

“Spinner Jack Leach has been ruled out of the LV= Insurance men’s Ashes series with a low back (lumbar) stress fracture,” an England statement said.

“England will announce a replacement for the Ashes series in due course.”