ENG vs NZ: England announce playing XI for 3rd Test, James Anderson rested

Ben Stokes’ England will take on New Zealand in the third and final Test of the three-match series at Headingley, Leeds. The match will commence on 23rd June, Thursday. The England team has announced the playing XI to face the Kiwis, as Jamie Overton is set to make his debut for the side.

The England team announced just one change to the team that completed a memorable series win in the second Test, as James Anderson has been rested amid injury concerns. The veteran pacer bagged 11 wickets in the series and will be crucial for England’s chances against India in the one-off Test, which begins just three days after the Headingley Test.

Stokes, who was a doubt himself for the Test with an illness, will be leading the side in the third Test and spoke about Anderson’s omission from the team. “Unfortunately, Jimmy’s not pulled up as much as we’d like to so Jamie Overton is going to make his debut this week,” Stokes revealed during his pre-match press conference.

England XI – Alex Lees, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Jamie Overton, Stuart Broad, Matt Potts, Jack Leach.

Jamie Overton gets rewarded for his excellent form with Surrey

England, who have already secured the series after a dramatic chase in the fourth innings of the second Test, were expected to rest senior players like Stuart Broad and Anderson. Matt Potts, who has been impressive with his tenacity, was also touted to be omitted from the game with the all-important Test against India next week in mind. But the management has persisted with the same combination apart from resting Anderson.

Jamie Overton, who is the twin brother of Craig Overton, will be making his debut for the Test team after a brilliant return of 21 wickets from five games at an average of 21.61 for Surrey this season in the County Championship. The tall fast bowler is pretty similar in stature to Craig but is much quicker in pace as he consistently hits the 90mph mark. Notably, Craig made his debut for the England side four years ago.