Picture Credit: Sky Sports
After facing a 9-wicket defeat in the Ashes opener at the Brisbane last week, England head into the second Test match at the Adelaide Oval trying to restore parity in the series. Prior to the pink-ball game which is set to get underway on December 16, the Three Lions have now announced their 12-member squad in which veteran fast bowler James Anderson made a comeback.
After having been left out of the first Test citing workload management reasons, the 39-year-old would be raring to go and help his team win a Test match and make a comeback in the series. Meanwhile, Anderson's long-time bowling partner Stuart Broad also finds his name in the 12-man list. Broad also missed out on the Playing XI in the first Test and it would be interesting to see if he gets an opportunity to bowl with the pink ball and don the Test cap for the 150th time.
Despite both Anderson and Broad being named in the 12-member list, the probability of both playing together seems less. It is Mark Wood who has been dropped from the second Test and either of the two bowlers might get a chance to play in his place.
We are trying to keep guys fresh: Jimmy Anderson
"It is always frustrating when you miss out on a Test but it is all about the big picture," the third-highest wicket-taker in Tests had told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"We have five Tests in fairly quick succession so we are trying to keep guys fresh," he added.
"It shows how strong a squad we've got when myself and Stuart come back into the 12 for this Test. We are fully focused on getting back in the series," he further said.
Prior to the match, it is worth highlighting that England have lost three of their four day-night Tests and had faced a 120-run defeat in their last outing at Adelaide in 2018.
England 12-member squad for second Ashes Test: Joe Root (C), James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Haseeb Hameed, Jack Leach, Dawid Malan, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes.