«Breaking News» Ben Stokes promoted to bat at No 3 in second Test against Sri Lanka as England name unchanged side

Ben Stokes will bat at No 3 in Wednesday's second Test against Sri Lanka at Pallekele as England settled on an unchanged side in their pursuit of a series victory.

And that means Jonny Bairstow has been left out altogether, despite being available for selection following his recovery from a twisted ankle.

Moeen Ali, who made nought and three from that position during the 211-run win at Galle last week, is set to go in at No 6, leaving Jos Buttler to move up a place to No 5.

Ben Stokes will bat at No 3 when England take on Sri Lanka in the second Test on Wednesday

On Monday, captain Joe Root had talked up the possibility of playing Buttler at No 3, and he batted in the nets alongside openers Keaton Jennings and Rory Burns. But coach Trevor Bayliss said after the first Test that Stokes’s tight technique seemed best-suited to the role.

Stokes has spent most of his 47-Test career batting at No 5 or 6, and has only twice batted as high as No 4 – both times when England were chasing quick runs.

At Galle, Buttler would have batted at No 3 had England bowled first and Ali been too tired from bowling to assume the role.

But as well as wanting to win a Test series in Sri Lanka – something England have not managed since 2000-01 – the management want to bring ‘clarity’ to the role, not least because a home Ashes is on the horizon.

Earlier in the day, Root had refused to confirm his batting order, but did say: ‘We want some sort of consistency in the top order, but there will be surfaces or conditions that are so extreme you might want to change things round.

‘We’ve got to make sure we’re ready to make those big decisions if we feel it’s necessary. Nothing is set in stone, but it would be good to have some clarity for the individual. Ideally, it would be the same player at No 3 in both innings.’

That doesn’t preclude the possibility that Buttler will come bat at No 3 if Stokes is tired after a long spell of bowling, though with the Pallekele pitch expected to turn that scenario may be unlikely.

The news comes as a blow to Bairstow, who missed out on Galle after twisting his left ankle playing football during the one-day series, but had been hoping to return to the side for the second Test.

But his chances took a nosedive when Ben Foakes, his replacement behind the stumps, hit a superb century on Test debut and kept immaculately, leaving Bairstow’s only route back into the side as a specialist batsman.

One option would have been to replace leg-spinner Adil Rashid, but the dryness of the Pallekele surface has persuaded England to stick with the three slow bowlers who claimed 16 Sri Lankan wickets at Galle. And that means both Bairstow and Stuart Broad, omitted from the first Test, must wait their turn.

 

Linkhienalouca.com

https://hienalouca.com/2018/11/13/ben-stokes-promoted-to-bat-at-no-3-in-second-test-against-sri-lanka-as-england-name-unchanged-side/
Main photo article Ben Stokes will bat at No 3 in Wednesday’s second Test against Sri Lanka at Pallekele as England settled on an unchanged side in their pursuit of a series victory.
And that means Jonny Bairstow has been left out altogether, despite being available for selection following his recovery from...

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