England rule out new blood for finale

ENGLAND have resisted the temptation to bring in fresh faces for the final match of the Ashes but several members of their unchanged squad could be playing for their Test futures at The Oval.

The battle for the urn ended on Sunday, when a 185-run win handed Australia an unassailable lead at Old Trafford.

But a 2-2 series draw remains a possibility for Joe Root’s side, a matter of pride as well as points in the new World Test Championship.

Ed Smith’s selection panel would have been tempted to introduce new blood, particularly to a batting line-up that has failed to deliver the kind of firstinnings runs required at the highest level, but with just three days between matches major changes were always unlikely.

Jason Roy, Joe Denly, Jonny Bairstow and Jos Buttler all average under 26 for the series and face question marks over the ongoing roles in the team but, with head coach

Trevor Bayliss’ tenure ending after the game, the status quo has been retained for at least one more week.

When change does come it may be in the form of Dominic Sibley and Zak Crawley, two uncapped openers, or Ollie Pope.

Ben Foakes, the Surrey wicketkeeper who excelled in Sri Lanka before being edged back out to make way for the BairstowButtler axis, will also warrant further discussion.

For now, though, last week’s XI – plus Chris Woakes and Sam Curran – have been retained.

Question marks remain over the fitness of Ben Stokes, who injured his right shoulder at the weekend and did not bowl in Australia’s second innings.

England are due to assess him over the next 48 hours but his batting – which brought a century at Lord’s and a contender for the best-ever Test innings at Headingley – would guarantee his role as a specialist in the top five.

What it would call for is a change elsewhere, with Woakes or Curran drafted in as an all-rounder with a batsman making way.

Roy would be an obvious candidate given his travails, but it may also be possible to switch the gloves around and retain Buttler at Bairstow’s expense.