England Test squad for Sri Lanka series announced, Zak Crawley ruled out, Olly Stone returns

England National Cricket Team have announced the squad for the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka National Cricket Team. Ben Stokes will be captaining the team while opening batter Zak Crawley has been ruled out of the series.

England National Cricket Team will be hosting Sri Lanka in the three-match series. The games between the teams will begin on 21st August at the Emirates, Old Trafford. The second match is scheduled to take place on 29th August at the Lord's Cricket Ground in London, with the last match to be played at Kia Oval in London.

The England squad for the Sri Lanka series is pretty similar to what they had in the West Indies series. Opener Zak Crawley will be missing the series due to the fractured right little finger, an injury which he sustained during the third game of the Test series against the West Indies National Cricket Team.

In his place young batter Jordan Cox has received his maiden call-up. The batter was included in the team for his sensational performances for Essex this season. He was also part of the England team which toured Pakistan for the white-ball series in 2022. Also, Dan Lawrence is set to open the innings for the team.

Fast bowler Dillion Pennington, who was part of the Test series against West Indies, also has been ruled out of the series. He sustained a hamstring injury while playing in The Hundred competition and has been deemed unfit to take part in the upcoming three-match series against Sri Lanka National Cricket Team.

In his place, Olly Stone has been recalled into the team. The fast bowler has been named in the team for the first time since June 2021. He so far has played three Test matches and would be keen to make an impact for the team on his comeback after more than two years.

England National Cricket Team squad for the Tests against Sri Lanka

Here's the England National Cricket Team squad for the Tests against Sri Lanka:

Ben Stokes (C), Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Mark Wood

England would be high on confidence going into the series against Sri Lanka. They thrashed West Indies National Cricket Team by 3-0 and dominated all the games. They would be keen to have a similar kind of result in the upcoming series as well and gather some crucial World Test Championship points.

England and Wales Cricket Board released the official statement revealing about the changes in the squad. The statement from the governing body read:

"Opening batter Zak Crawley will miss the series due to a fractured right little finger sustained in the third Test victory over the West Indies. Seam bowler Dillion Pennington, who featured in the Test squad during the recent series victory over the West Indies, will also miss the series after sustaining a hamstring injury while playing in The Hundred competition.

There is a first call-up for Essex middle-order batter Jordan Cox. The 23-year-old right-handed bat has been in excellent form for Essex this season after joining from Kent at the start of the year. He has been involved in the England set-up previously, having toured Pakistan with the England white-ball squad in the autumn of 2022. Nottinghamshire seamer Olly Stone returns to the Test squad for the first time since June 2021 and will be looking to add to his three Test caps."