- No big surprises as Chris Silverwood selects squad for Australia
- Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer left out as expected
England have named a 17-man squad for this winter’s bid to regain the Ashes with head coach Chris Silverwood insisting there is “genuine excitement and belief that we can do something special” in Australia.
As expected, there is no Ben Stokes in the touring party as he continues his indefinite break from cricket to focus on his mental wellbeing and rehabilitation from surgery on his injured left index finger, while Jofra Archer is a long-term absentee with an elbow problem.
Sam Curran is also ruled out of the 11-week trip that starts in early November due to the diagnosis of a stress fracture to his lower back, the same injury that sees Olly Stone also absent and leaves Mark Wood as the sole outright pace bowler at captain Joe Root’s disposal.
But otherwise there are no high profile absentees due to the demands of playing overseas during the ongoing pandemic, with Silverwood – the sole selector these days – offering cautious optimism regarding his side’s chances in the five-Test series.