England Announces Squad for Sri Lanka Test Series Amid Key Absences

England will miss Zak Crawley in their test series against Sri Lanka due to a fractured finger. Jordan Cox joins the squad for the first time, while Olly Stone returns after a long gap. England's squad features several established names, and the first test begins on August 21 at Old Trafford.

England will be without opening batter Zak Crawley for their three-match test series against Sri Lanka after he fractured his right little finger, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced on Sunday. The 14-member squad also sees seamer Dillon Pennington missing out due to a hamstring injury.

Middle-order batter Jordan Cox has received his first call-up to the test squad. The 23-year-old had previously toured Pakistan with the white-ball squad in 2022. Seamer Olly Stone returns to the squad for the first time since June 2021.

Captained by Ben Stokes, England will host Sri Lanka at Old Trafford for the first test starting August 21. The full England test squad includes Ben Stokes (captain), Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, and Mark Wood.

(With inputs from agencies.)