ENG vs IND | England boost pace attack as Gus Atkinson returns ahead of Lord’s Test

‌England have bolstered their pace attack further, after the 336-run battering received at the hands of India in Birmingham, as they named Gus Atkinson in the squad for the third Test at Lord’s from Thursday. Atkinson returns to the fold after missing the first two Tests due to a hamstring injury.

With his addition, England will now have seven pacers at their disposal in the 16-member squad, apart from skipper Ben Stokes. The hosts will look to manage the workloads of the pace trio of Chris Woakes, Josh Tongue and Brydon Carse, who figured in both the matches against India.

"It's no secret that we have spent some time in the field and bowled some overs in the first two games, and we'll have to see how everyone pulls up over the next two days," Ben Stokes said. "With it being a quick turnaround, there probably will be a decision we have to make, given how everyone does pull up after this game. Everyone's in consideration for the game at Lord's."

The England pace trio bowled 82, 81 and 77 overs, respectively, in the two gruelling high-scoring contests with Jofra Archer, who was already part of the squad in the second Test, and Atkinson expected to get a go in the third. England’s head coach Brendon McCullum also confirmed that Archer will feature in the scheme of things as England look to manage the workload of their fast bowlers.

"We'll let this one settle, and when we get to [Lord's] we'll have a good think about it," head coach Brendon McCullum told the BBC's Test Match Special.

"He's fit and ready to go. Obviously, the other boys have had two Test matches on the spin now, so you'd anticipate you would make a change at some stage with the line-up, and Jofra is one we'll look at."