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Jos Buttler called into England Test squad as cover for Matt Prior Alastair Cook ‘99% certain’ Matt Prior will be fit enough to face India
(about 4 hours later)
Jos Buttler has been called into the England squad as injury cover for Matt Prior ahead of the first Test against India, which starts at Trent Bridge on Wednesday. Alastair Cook is “99% certain” that Matt Prior will overcome a fitness scare to play in the first Test against India at Trent Bridge.
Prior, who was recalled ahead of England’s home series against Sri Lanka after being dropped towards the end of the 5-0 Ashes defeat to Australia, suffered mild tightness in his right thigh during training on Monday. England summoned Lancashire’s Jos Buttler to Nottingham for their last practice session on Tuesday after Prior had suffered a thigh injury the previous day. But Cook said that Prior came through a lengthy fitness test on the Trent Bridge outfield with no problems. “There was a little bit of concern yesterday with his thigh,” said the captain, “but he’s done everything we’ve asked, and we are 99% certain he’ll be fine. Of course we still have to give him a little check in the morning.”
“Prior will continue to be assessed during the training session before a decision is made about his fitness,” the England and Wales Cricket Board said in a statement. It is the second consecutive five-Test series that Prior has had to overcome fitness concerns to start, and he will hope to avoid a repeat of what followed in Australia after he recovered from a calf injury just in time to play in the first Test in Brisbane. He struggled horribly for batting and then wicketkeeping form to such an extent that he was dropped after the Ashes had been lost in the third Test and was replaced by Jonny Bairstow.
Buttler has played 33 one-day internationals and 36 Twenty20 matches for England but is uncapped at Test level. The 32-year-old will be desperate to hold his place now, with pressure growing for Buttler to be given a chance in the Test team after making such an impression in one-day cricket. England preferred Prior for the two-Test series against Sri Lanka, with Cook describing him as one of a hard core of senior players around whom he wanted to build a new team, and he justified their faith with a good performance in the first Test at Lord’s.
But he was less impressive in the second Test defeat at Headingley, missing two chances to dismiss Kumar Sangakkara on the first day, which proved costly in the final analysis of such a tight contest, and falling to a bouncer for the second time in the series.
Cook described the rest of England’s selection as “a very tough call,” with the return of Ben Stokes after injury appearing to leave him, Chris Jordan and Chris Woakes contesting the final spot.
India’s captain MS Dhoni went close to confirming his team, discounting the possibility of playing two spinners, which would leave the seam-bowling all-rounder Stuart Binny likely to play at the expense of the experienced off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.