The next big assignment for England in the longer format will be against India. The series will start in January. Already, the ECB has announced the squad for this series. There were quite a few newcomers while there were also some unexpected exclusions. Here, we take a look at the list of three England cricketers unlucky to miss out on the India Test series.
England squad for the India Test series: Ben Stokes (C), Rehan Ahmed, James Anderson, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Mark Wood.
1) Chris Woakes
Chris Woakes was arguably the best player for England in Ashes 2023. Yet, the experienced bowling all-rounder has missed the Tour of India.
It could have to do with his performance in the 2023 ODI World Cup, which was not great. James Anderson has been selected and will continue to lead the pace attack.
2) Will Jacks
Will Jacks is one of the England cricketers unlucky to miss out on the India Test series. It was clear that there would be a lot of spinners who would be selected for this tour. England has gone for a fresh look in this regard. However, they do have a lack of quality batting all-rounders.
While Joe Root can also offer spin, it would have been handy to have Will Jacks in the side. He is a player who needs to be groomed for the future. Hence, his absence was a big shock to many.
3) Liam Dawson
The spin all-rounder picked close to 50 wickets in the 2023 County Championship. However, Liam still missed out. On the other hand, uncapped spinner Tom Hartley has been selected.
A few off-field reasons could have also played a role in this decision. That said, it is a big miss for both the player and the team.
