England has recalled Ollie Pope and Dan Lawrence to the national team for the first two Tests against Pakistan, with Joe Root set to captain the side for the first time since being reappointed in July. Lawrence's inclusion is due to his strong domestic form, having scored 788 runs at an average of 65.66 in the County Championship this season. Jordan Cox will bat at number three in place of injured Jacob Bethell, who will miss the entire series. England's men's national selector, Marcus North, said the squad balances "rising talent with the experience needed" against a strong Pakistan team.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-21,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Dan Lawrence and Ollie Pope, two players from Surrey, have been recalled to the England cricket team for the first two Tests against Pakistan, which start on Wednesday 19 August at Headingley. This comes after a successful domestic season for Lawrence, who has earned 14 Test caps, with his last appearance in September 2024. The recall is part of a 16-man squad led by Joe Root, who will captain the team for the first time since being reappointed to the role in July. However, fellow Surrey player Jacob Bethell will miss the entire series due to injury and has been replaced by Jordan Cox, who will bat at number three. The series marks England's first Test outing since the retirement of captain Ben Stokes and the sacking of head coach Brendon McCullum**.
Written for “England Cricket Team Selection” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The article presents a neutral tone in its language, but shows a slight positive bias towards the recalled players, particularly Dan Lawrence and Ollie Pope, by highlighting their recent domestic form and 'exceptional season' without providing critical context. Additionally, the selector's quotes emphasize the team's balance of experience and rising talent, which may be interpreted as leaning slightly rightward in its values.
Written under an earlier scoring contract, which gave a paragraph
rather than checkable quotes. Re-analysing this article replaces it.
Leaning score +0.15 for article 556 · logged 2026-08-06
- Published
Surrey duo Ollie Pope and Dan Lawrence have been recalled to the England squad for the first two Tests against Pakistan.
asserted
Pope → publish → Pakistan
The pair have been named in a 16-man squad before the series opener at Headingley on Wednesday 19 August but Jacob Bethell will miss the entire series through injury, with Jordan Cox to be promoted to number three.
asserted
Cox → name → number
The three-match series marks England's first Test outing since the retirement of captain Ben Stokes and sacking of head coach Brendon McCullum.
asserted
series → mark → McCullum
Joe Root will captain the side for the first time since being reappointed to the role in July, with Marcus Trescothick serving as interim head coach.
asserted
Trescothick → captain → coach
McCullum's replacement, Stephen Fleming, will begin his tenure against South Africa in December.
asserted
replacement → begin → December
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England's 16-man squad for the first two Tests against Pakistan: Joe Root (c), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Matthew Fisher, Emilio Gay, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue.
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Lawrence, who earned the last of his 14 Test caps in September 2024, is rewarded for his domestic form.
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who → earn → form
The 29-year-old is the second-highest run-scorer in Division One of the County Championship, with 788 runs at 65.66, including five centuries, in 13 innings.
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old → include → innings
He is slated to bat at six, filling a middle-order vacancy created by Stokes' retirement, but is far from a like-for-like replacement for the former captain.
asserted
He → slat → captain
Only Gus Atkinson (79 wickets) has taken more Test wickets for England than Stokes (78) since the start of June 2022.
asserted
Atkinson → take → June
Lawrence, who bowls right-arm off-spin, has taken nine wickets from 178.2 overs in the County Championship this season.
asserted
who → bowl → Championship
Former vice-captain Pope was replaced by Bethell at number three for the final two Ashes Tests in Australia following an extended period of poor form and was subsequently dropped from the squad against New Zealand.
asserted
Pope → replace → Zealand
Like Lawrence, he has performed well in the County Championship, scoring 510 runs at 56.66, including five 50+ knocks, for Surrey, but will not automatically slot back into the side in Bethell's absence.
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he → perform → absence
Bethell suffered a knee injury during the ODI series against India in July and is set to be replaced by Cox, who made his Test debut against New Zealand at The Oval.
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who → suffer → Oval
England's men's national selector, Marcus North, said: "We have selected a squad for the first two Tests that balances rising talent with the experience needed against a quality Pakistan team.
"
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that → say → team
Dan Lawrence returns following an exceptional season so far with Surrey and we believe he has the right level of experience, maturity and skill to complement our middle order.
"
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he → return → order
Jordan Cox is well regarded as one of the most exciting talents in English cricket and will have the opportunity to bat at three in place of Jacob Bethell, who sadly misses this series through injury.
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who → regard → injury
Essex's Sam Cook returns to the squad for the first time since last summer.
asserted
Cook → return → summer
The 29-year-old seamer made his international debut against Zimbabwe in May 2025 and was named in the squad for the five-match series against India but did not feature.
uncertain
seamer → make → India
Brydon Carse returns after a broken wrist ruled him out of the Indian Premier League and the start of the Test summer while England are sticking with spinner Shoaib Bashir, who featured in the first and third Tests against New Zealand after being overlooked during the Ashes.
'No brave new world for England'
Analysis by BBC cricket reporter Henry Moeran
For those who were hoping for a brave new world, there may be disappointment.
uncertain
who → return → world
Ollie Pope and Brydon Carse return for the first time since the Ashes and Dan Lawrence is selected two years on from his last Test appearance
asserted
Lawrence → return → appearance
The big question was who was going to replace Ben Stokes as the all-rounder but that much isn't entirely obvious.
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much → go → rounder
There is no place for Sam Curran, James Coles or Rehan Ahmed, who is dropped, which means Lawrence, if selected, might find his part-time spin plays a significant role.
uncertain
spin → be → role
