Wood returns in place of Shoaib Bashir for third Test at Rajkot
Cricket
Wood played as a lone seamer in England's victory in the first Test at Hyderabad
Mark Wood has been recalled to England's attack at the expense of the off-spinner Shoaib Bashir, as England confirmed their team for the third Test against India, which gets underway in Rajkot on Thursday.
Wood played as a lone seamer in England's victory in the first Test at Hyderabad but went wicketless on a surface that did not suit his express pace. However, he has been recalled to partner James Anderson, who impressed with five wickets at Visakhapatnam last week, on a surface that had been more green-tinged in the lead-up to the match.
He is the only change to the starting XI, with Bashir sitting out after claiming four wickets on debut in the second Test. It means that England will be playing two seamers for the first time in the series, after fielding a spin-dominant attack in each of the last two matches.
Rehan Ahmed's participation for this match had been in some doubt after he encountered visa issues on his return to India, following the team's mid-series break in Abu Dhabi. However, that issue has been resolved.
England: 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Ollie Pope, 4 Joe Root, 5 Jonny Bairstow, 6 Ben Stokes (capt), 7 Ben Foakes (wk), 8 Rehan Ahmed, 9 Tom Hartley, 10 Mark Wood, 11 James Anderson. - Courtesy ESPNcricinfo
