England have announced their side for the fourth Test match of their series against India, with spin-bowling all-rounder Liam Dawson set to make his return, eight years after his last appearance in the format.
The Old Trafford Test will begin on Wednesday (July 23), with England going into the match with a 2-1 lead in the series. They have made one change to their line-up from the side which won a tense game at Lord's, with Jofra Archer set to play back-to-back Test matches after his sensational Test return at Lord's.
England XI for Old Trafford Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Liam Dawson, Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer
Dawson returns after eight-year Test absence
After Shoaib Bashir was ruled out of the rest of the series with a broken finger he sustained during the Lord's Test, Dawson was called-up to England's squad. The Hampshire all-rounder has played three Tests in his career, the last of which came more than eight years ago against South Africa in Nottingham. Dawson's Test bowling stats read seven wickets from three games at an average of 42.57.
His return to England's Test fold ends long speculation over whether he would be called on in the format again. Dawson has been one of the leading English spinners in domestic cricket over the last few years. In last year's County Championship, he took 54 wickets at 25.14, and scored three centuries, putting him in the top 10 wicket-takers and run-scorers for the entire competition.
There was speculation that Dawson would be called upon for England's tour of India last year. However, his already agreed upon franchise commitments, and doubt over whether he would feature in a final playing XI, led to him admitting accepting an England call-up if it came would not be straightforward. Asked by ESPNcricinfo last year whether he was still keen to play Test cricket, Dawson said: "Probably not now, no. Being honest, there's a few things that have happened over the last year. For me, probably Test cricket now is completely off the radar. But it is what it is, I'm 34 and I want to enjoy my cricket and try to win trophies towards the end of my career."
England called-up young spinners Bashir, Tom Hartley, and Rehan Ahmed for that series, with Jack Leach ruled out with injury after the first Test. Dawson did not feature in England's squad that toured Pakistan last winter.
However, he is now set to make his return, which puts him in the top 10 of biggest gaps between Test appearances.
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