England captain Ben Stokes will miss the deciding Test against India after being ruled out with a right shoulder injury.
Stokes, whose deputy Ollie Pope will lead the team in his absence, has been battling quite a lot of fitness issues over the course of the Rothesay series and has finally been laid low with an issue that reared its head during last week’s draw at Old Trafford.
He will likely be replaced by Jacob Bethell, making his first Test appearance of the 12 months in one in every of 4 changes to the England XI.
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Liam Dawson has been dropped one match into his comeback, with England opting to go and not using a front-line spinner, while pace pair Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse are rested.
Three fresh quicks come into the side, with Surrey pair Gus Atkinson and Jamie Overton returning on home soil and Josh Tongue completing the line-up.
It is known Stokes has sustained a grade-three muscle tear, meaning a big lay-off awaits the all-rounder.
England don’t play Test cricket again until the Ashes this winter, meaning the 34-year-old could face a decent recovery period to be fit for the hotly-anticipated series.
Stokes is resulting from address the media on Wednesday morning to shed further light on his condition.
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