Brydon Carse has been excluded from England’s squad for the upcoming final Test match of the summer against Pakistan, scheduled to take place at Edgbaston next week. This decision comes amid an ongoing police investigation into assault allegations linked to a late-night incident at a bar in Derby last month, which briefly resulted in the Durham fast bowler’s arrest. The Cricket Regulator is also looking into the matter.
Due to the pending investigations, Carse was omitted from last week’s second Test lineup. Although he was named in the squad for the first Test, he did not make it into the playing XI. Sonny Baker, who took Carse’s place for the second Test but did not participate, remains part of a squad that has seen minimal changes, with only Matthew Fisher absent. Other squad members not included in the team at Lord’s are Shoaib Bashir, Sam Cook, and Ollie Pope.
After securing the series victory at Lord’s, interim coach Marcus Trescothick emphasized the need for the team to maintain their momentum, highlighting the advantages of having the first-choice seamers—Jofra Archer, Ollie Robinson, Josh Tongue, and Gus Atkinson—play together consistently. He noted, “The more experience everyone gets together, then it sort of fits into place how you want it to be.”
While England is likely to field a consistent lineup, Pakistan has made significant changes, announcing on Monday the dismissal of head coach Sarfaraz Ahmed and the exclusion of seven players, including five who participated in the first two Tests. With an original squad of 18, it’s possible that none of the seven replacements, of which five are uncapped, will be selected. Notably, the departing players comprise two of their four bowlers and both recognized all-rounders.
The squad for England includes: Joe Root (captain, Yorkshire), Jofra Archer (Sussex), Gus Atkinson (Surrey), Sonny Baker (Hampshire), Shoaib Bashir (Derbyshire), Harry Brook (Yorkshire), Sam Cook (Essex), Jordan Cox (Essex), Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire), Emilio Gay (Durham), Dan Lawrence (Surrey), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Ollie Robinson (Sussex), Jamie Smith (Surrey), and Josh Tongue (Nottinghamshire).
If the final Test extends over five days, England will have less than 48 hours to prepare for a white-ball series against Sri Lanka, which begins on September 15 in Southampton. Sri Lanka revealed their squad for both T20 and ODI formats on Wednesday, reinstating Charith Asalanka as vice-captain for both series. Asalanka, who recently returned to the team after being dropped from the T20 squad, had previously replaced Kusal Mendis as captain in 2024.
Asalanka’s selection comes after a strong performance in the Lanka Premier League, where he accumulated 385 runs and was named player of the match in last month’s final. Lahiru Udara, who was the leading run-scorer in the LPL with 434 runs, has also been recalled after a three-year absence from the national team. England is anticipated to announce their squad for the series later this week.
