The Ashes has reached its peak in terms of controversy with Jonny Bairstow's dismissal still eking out reactions out of former cricketers from England and Australia. But with all said and done, England find themselves in trouble having lost the first two Tests of the series. Ahead of the third Test in Headingley, the hosts have suffered yet another major blow as their number three batter Ollie Pope has been ruled out of the remainder of the series.
Engand Cricket Board (ECB) confirmed the news stating that Pope has dislocated his right shoulder and will undergo surgery for the same. He underwent scans in London on Monday and that is when the management got to know the extent of injury. ECB has also decided to not name a replacement for him in the squad. Daniel Lawrence is the only other batter in the squad and he will most likely bat at number three for the rest of the series.
Pope getting ruled out is a major blow to England as he was just settling in on the role at the crucial position in the batting order. Though he had not set the stage on fire in two Test matches, the Surrey batter was being looked at as a long-term option for the summer. Instead, he will working closely with England and Surrey medical teams now in respect of his rehabilitation.
England's top three is once again shaken with Zak Crawley not being consistent and now Pope being unavailable. There will be a lot of pressure on Lawrence to come good having last played in March 2022. He has so far featured in 11 Test matches for England scoring only 551 runs at an average of 29 with four fifties to his name.
England's updated Ashes squad for 3rd Test: Ben Stokes (C), Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Dan Lawrence, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow (WK), Harry Brook, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Ollie Robinson, Josh Tongue, Mark Wood
