James Anderson
James Anderson. (Credits: Twitter)

England will be without their all-time leading Test wicket-taker James Anderson for the last two Ashes Tests too. The senior pacer has failed to make it to England’s 13-man squad for the upcoming game after failing to recover from a calf injury. The fourth match of the five-match series begins at his home ground of Old Trafford on Wednesday.

With Anderson’s unavailability confirmed, England have bolstered their seam options by recalling Somerset’s Craig Overton for the first time since March 2018. Overton last played during England’s heavy defeat by an innings and 49-run to New Zealand in Auckland. Overton had famously dismissed Steve Smith in the last Ashes.

England have also retained struggling Jason Roy in the squad. Roy, who starred for his country in the World Cup, has looked more or less clueless in Tests so far and has averaged only 9.50 in six Ashes innings.

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James Anderson
James Anderson (Credit: Getty Images)

Anderson, meanwhile, exited the Ashes after bowling just four overs on the opening morning of the first Test. He could not make it to the second and third games due to the calf injury. Speculations were high that he would recover for the fourth game after he decided to play for Lancashire second XI against Leicestershire and then Durham. But the ECB has confirmed the pacer is still not fully fit.

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The cricket board stated that Anderson “became aware of right calf pain” while bowling on Thursday, according to Sky Sports.

“He immediately sought a medical assessment from Lancashire and was withdrawn from the remainder of the game,” read the statement.

The series, meanwhile, is locked at 1-1 after Ben Stokes’ heroic ton in the previous game helped England stun Australia.

England squad for the fourth Ashes Test:

Joe Root (Yorkshire) captain, Jofra Archer (Sussex), Jonny Bairstow (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Rory Burns (Surrey), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Sam Curran (Surrey), Joe Denly (Kent), Jack Leach (Somerset), Craig Overton (Somerset), Jason Roy (Surrey), Ben Stokes (Durham), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire)