Just the standard obsession with Ashes cricket, Australia lost a game so they’ll wheel anybody out to try and convince us all we aren’t going to lose 4-0 again.
England team to face India in first Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.
Not really surprised at that selection, will be interesting to see who opens the bowling. Carse and Tongue both strike me as more first change kind of options, if there is swing then Stokes himself would probably be a better bet alongside Woakes though I can’t remember if he’s done it in tests beforehand.
Carse has done well so far away from home in his short test career, if he stays fit I can see him being a mainstay going forward. Atkinson also has something about him, I don’t think he’ll be a chalk and cheese bowler like Woakes is. Have to find a way to get Wood and Archer available for some games out there to have a chance though.
