Last Updated on 4 months by Charbel Coorey
Jamie Overton has made a surprise return to England’s Test squad for the series opener against India, stepping in after his Surrey teammate Gus Atkinson was ruled out with a hamstring injury.
Overton, whose sole Test appearance came at Headingley against New Zealand in 2022 — coincidentally the venue for the upcoming first Test on June 20 — made a game-changing 97 and claimed a wicket in each innings during that match. Despite playing only three County Championship games since the start of last season due to injuries and IPL commitments, he has leapfrogged Matthew Potts in the pecking order as a backup seam option.
“We’ve spoken many times about our varied attack, and making sure that we’ve still got some pace in the attack,” Luke Wright, England’s selector, said. “Jamie showed in white-ball cricket that he’s got a huge amount of pace and bounce, and he’s a real threat.
Initially, England had hoped Atkinson would recover in time for the first Test, but he has now officially been ruled out, depleting their seam-bowling resources.
England squad for 1st India Test: Ben Stokes (C), Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes
England squad analysis for 1st Test vs India: Hosts dealing with injuries on the bowling front
Since 2022, no seamer has taken more Test wickets for England than Atkinson.
Mark Wood and Olly Stone are both out of the series with knee injuries, while Jofra Archer will not be match-fit until the second Test at the earliest after a thumb issue.
Sam Cook, who made his debut in the Zimbabwe Test, retains his place in the squad but is likely to start the India series as a reserve. Chris Woakes returns to contention after recovering from an ankle injury. Also included is Josh Tongue, who missed the entire 2024 season due to injury but featured in the England Lions’ match against India A at Northampton — alongside Woakes — as part of preparations for the first Test.
Potts is arguably the unluckiest absentee, having been named in squads for all formats this summer, including the Zimbabwe Test in which Cook was selected ahead of him.
“It’s really tough on Pottsy,” Wright said. “It was probably between him and Cookie for that other spare bowler, if we were to lose Woakesy, and we just felt that maybe Cookie has got the edge with that new ball. But we know what Potts is all about. It’s not easy for him, but it’s great to have him as a squad bowler in the pack, if any injuries happen. But on this occasion, he’s just missed out.”
Meanwhile, Jacob Bethell returns after missing the Zimbabwe Test due to IPL commitments, posing a selection dilemma for England. He impressed in his debut series in New Zealand, where he scored three fifties batting at No. 3, which had cast doubts over the places of Zak Crawley and Ollie Pope. However, both Crawley and Pope responded with centuries against Zimbabwe and may retain their spots for now.
“He’s very close,” Wright said of Bethell’s potential return to the starting XI. “It’s a great option to have, isn’t it? It’s lovely to have him back, what a talent we all see in him. When Baz and Stokesy took on these roles, we were really struggling as a batting group to get runs on the board, and we’re getting to a point now where we’re getting real depth into that squad, which is fantastic.”
England predicted XI for 1st Test against India
1. Ben Duckett, 2. Zak Crawley, 3. Ollie Pope, 4. Joe Root, 5. Harry Brook, 6. Ben Stokes (c), 7. Jamie Smith (wk), 8. Chris Woakes, 9. Brydon Carse, 10. Shoaib Bashir, 11. Josh Tongue
The England team analysed: Player Notes and Key Stats
- Ben Duckett: Since his Test comeback in 2022, he’s scored 2,300 runs at an average of 45.09, with 5 centuries and 12 fifties — the sixth-highest run-scorer in Tests in this period. What truly stands out, though, is the pace at which he scores: among batters with a minimum of 25 Test innings since 2022, no one has a higher strike rate than Ben Duckett (joint-top with Harry Brook at 88.90). He’s coming off a fluent 140 off 134 balls against Zimbabwe in Nottingham.
- Zak Crawley: In 2021, he averaged just 10.81 across 16 Test innings — he was thinking too much of his defence, with Silverwood as the coach. Since McCullum took over in May 2022, both his average and strike rate have seen a lift – he’s averaged 38.70 in England at a strike rate of 77.29. He also had a successful tour of India, scoring 407 runs in 5 Tests at an average of 40.70 (SR: 68.51). He too is coming off a century against Zimbabwe.
- Ollie Pope: Whenever his career seems to be on a downhill path, he finds a way to respond with an innings of substance — like he did thrice last year, notching up 3 centuries (in 30 innings) despite averaging just 33.13 in 2024, lower than his career average of 35.49. Bethell may be the better player, but England continue picking Pope — and they likely will for the 1st Test too, especially after that 171 off 166 against Zimbabwe.
How Ollie Pope’s technique has evolved: https://www.facebook.com/WisdenCric/videos/how-ollie-popes-technique-has-evolved/3280874192214436/
- Joe Root: No player has scored more Test runs since the start of 2020 than Joe Root — 5647 at an average of 54.29, with 19 centuries and 20 fifties. The next best? Marnus Labuschagne, a staggering 2436 runs behind.
- Harry Brook: Since his debut in 2022, Harry Brook has averaged over 50 in every calendar year in Test cricket. However, 7 of his 8 Test centuries have come away from home. He’ll be keen to improve on his modest average of 39 in England. Technique-wise, Brook has a backfoot trigger, and while his front foot often doesn’t get to the pitch of the ball, his fast hands, strong wrists, and sharp reflexes usually compensate brilliantly.
- Ben Stokes: For all the hype the English media builds around Stokes, here’s what his Test (batting) record has actually looked like over the past few years:
- Jamie Smith: Technically the best English batter after Joe Root, he’s already crafted some fine innings across varied conditions — dealing with nip off the seam, swing through the air, some bounce, and even turn. He’s averaging 42.73 (SR: 72.42) in his brief Test career so far. He has the potential to bat higher up the order. Jamie Smith said, “Opening against WI was ‘great practice’ for India Tests.”
- Chris Woakes: While Woakes averages 48.93 away from home, he boasts a stellar average of 21.59 in England. He’s been especially lethal of late; Since 2020, he’s averaged just 19.65 in home Tests. In particular, he’s using the wobble-seam delivery more. He has somewhat turned into a wobble-seam specialist.
Watch: Chris Woakes nicks David Warner off with wobble-seam beauty https://x.com/englandcricket/status/1685960366897983488
- Brydon Carse: He was the highest wicket taker on the New Zealand tour, picking up 18 wickets in just 3 Tests — including a 10-wicket haul. In his debut series in Pakistan, he led the attack again with 9 wickets at 24.33. Yet to feature in a Test at home, he’s already emerged as one of their more dependable seamers — a hit-the-deck bowler seam (not swing) bowler, who can be their workhorse.
Watch: Brydon Carse Takes 3-23 against Black Caps on T20I Debut https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zwitEymeJQ
- Shoaib Bashir: Interestingly, Bashir’s numbers are better at home than overseas. In England, he’s taken 24 wickets at an average of 28.50, while away from home, his 34 wickets have come at 41.97. His overall numbers might not be the most impressive yet, but he’s still young and relatively raw, with limited FC experience. While he has bowled a fair share of loose deliveries in his Test career so far, his bowling against Zimbabwe showed better control, which is an encouraging sign for England.
- Josh Tongue: One of the most talented fast bowlers in England. He gets movement off the pitch, alongside bounce.
Dream Debut for Josh Tongue: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meuWAaI_NWI&t=1s
Stokes impressed with Tongue’s versatility: https://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/126742/stokes-impressed-with-tongues-versatility
