Ben Stokes and Zak Crawley are both battling to be fit in time for England's opening Test against Pakistan in less than two week's time.
The pair picked up injuries during the summer, with Crawley breaking his finger during England's final Test against the West Indies, and Stokes tearing his hamstring while taking a run during The Hundred. Both were ruled out of the three-match series against Sri Lanka. Dan Lawrence was parachuted in to open in place of Crawley, and Jamie Smith moved one place up the order as England covered Stokes' absence with an extra bowler. Ollie Pope also got his first outing as England captain, with Stokes keeping a watchful eye from the balcony.
The proximity of the first Test in Pakistan to the end of the England summer means there is doubt over whether either will be fit in time to take to the field in Multan. The first Test begins on October 7, less than a month after England finished their home Test season against Sri Lanka.
When England named their squad for the Pakistan series, which included both Stokes and Crawley, there was an optimistic update about Crawley's recovery. A statement released as part of the squad announcement said that Crawley had made "significant progress in his recovery to earn selection". The announcement also said that Stokes was continuing to recover from his hamstring tear, with scans today (September 25) confirming that he remains on track. A report in the Daily Mail suggests he could play as a specialist batter only at the start of the series, but until he takes the field, some doubt will remain.
If either or both of Crawley and Stokes aren't fit for the opening Test, it's not completely clear how England would fill the holes they leave.
How could England replace Zak Crawley?
During the Sri Lanka Tests, Crawley was replaced by a straight swap for Lawrence, who came in to open the batting in Tests for the first time. However, after returning a top score of 35 and registering three single figures scores in six innings, Lawrence has not been included in the squad that will travel to Pakistan.
The only spare specialist batter England have selected for the series is Jordan Cox. Cox has primarily batted in the middle order throughout his first-class career, and hasn't opened the batting in the County Championship since 2021. While not considered a natural opener in red-ball cricket, he is England's only backup option if Crawley is unfit. That would also follow the pattern of England backing the natural attributes and talent of players to adapt to whatever position opens up for them. Lawrence was also not a regular opener in first-class cricket before he was selected to stand-in for Crawley, and neither was Ben Duckett before he got his opportunity in Pakistan two years ago.
The other options England have at their disposal would be to drop Cox into the middle order and promote one of the other batters in their XI, or to pick a bowling all-rounder, perhaps Chris Woakes, at No.7 and back the top six to get enough runs. This option is more attractive if Stokes can't bowl. Harry Brook has previously stated he would not be averse to open that batting in Tests if that was what was asked of him, and Joe Root lived a previous life as an opener in his early Test career. Realistically, however, England won't disturb that engine room of their middle order, and Cox will almost certainly open if Crawley's finger keeps him out.
How could England replace Ben Stokes?
In terms of captaincy, Pope will once again stand-in for Stokes if he isn't fit. As for how to replace him in the XI, that's less clear.
When England went to Pakistan in 2022, they anticipated they would be faced with flat tracks. Their game plan was clear from the outset, score big runs quickly and rely on a combination of a relentless battering from their seamers, reverse swing, and a handful of different types of spinners. It was an effective approach, and their 3-0 series win will go down as one of England's momentous overseas victories. However, this time, there is less certainty around the surfaces they will face. In Bangladesh's recent series in Pakistan, their seamers cleaned up, taking 21 wickets between them while both sides only exceeded 300 in an innings once each.
How England replace Stokes if he's unfit will depend on the types of pitches they encounter. If the surfaces are flatter than anticipated, including an extra bowler would likely be the better option, because of the potential for a heavy workload. If the surfaces appear greener or likely to break up, it would make sense to replace him with Cox (presuming Crawley is fit), to extend their middle-order and maximise their run-potential. If both are unfit, England will have no option other than to include and extra-bowler and extend their tail, with Chris Woakes likely to come in at No.7.
It's the age old problem that a true all-rounder is gold-dust, and England don't have a like-for-like player to replace Stokes. In his absence against Sri Lanka this summer, England were noticeably a batter light. The most similar replacement in innings squad is Stokes's Durham teammate, Brydon Carse. In his comeback game for Durham after serving his betting ban this season, Carse scored a century from No.8 and took three wickets. If selected as Stokes's effective replacement in Multan, Carse will likely come in at No.8, ahead of Gus Atkinson but behind Woakes. While still imperfect, a lower order trio of Woakes, Carse and Atkinson would somewhat alleviate England's concerns with the bat, while ensuring they have enough bowling options in the Multan heat.
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