Ben Stokes has named his England team for the first Ashes Test that starts at Edgbaston on Friday, opting for the experience of Stuart Broad over the pace of Mark Wood in his final selection decision.
The expected return of Jimmy Anderson and Ollie Robinson after missing the one-off Test against Ireland with niggles meant a logjam in the seam department for the series opener and the possibility that Broad might find himself squeezed out.
Had this occurred, the return of Moeen Ali as the solitary spinner would have meant an entirely fresh attack from the Lord’s match but Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum have instead decided on continuity in one of the berths when announcing their XI two days out from the first ball being bowled.
Whether this sees Broad handed an instant reunion with David Warner – seven times his victim in the 2019 series – remains to be seen, however, with the 36-year-old operating at first change since Anderson and Robinson became the preferred new-ball pairing last summer.