Birmingham, September 2: The third and final Test match between Pakistan and England is set to begin at Edgbaston on September 9. England has excluded fast bowler Brydon Carse from their 15-member squad as he remains under police investigation following his arrest in Derby.
The 31-year-old Carse was removed from the second Test played at Lord’s after being arrested outside a nightclub on August 22. Derbyshire police have confirmed they are investigating allegations of assault.
Despite playing in Durham’s victory against Gloucestershire in the County Championship last week, Carse was not selected for the ongoing Northamptonshire, nor have national selectors called him back.
Replacing Carse before the Lord’s Test, 23-year-old uncapped fast bowler Sony Baker has retained his place in the squad. Fast bowler Matthew Fisher is the only player dropped as England aims for a 3-0 series victory in Birmingham. Following impressive wins by an innings and 103 runs at Headingley and by 194 runs at Lord’s, England holds an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.
After the Test series, England is scheduled to play six white-ball matches against . Consequently, the management may rotate key fast bowlers like Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, and Josh Tongue. This could open opportunities for Baker, fast bowler Sam Cook, or off-spinner Shoaib Bashir to play at Edgbaston.
The 29-year-old Cook played his only Test match last summer against Zimbabwe, while Bashir has yet to feature in the current series as England prioritized a fast-bowling unit. Baker made his Test debut in June against New Zealand.
Meanwhile, Pakistan faces ongoing uncertainty despite taking stringent measures after consecutive heavy defeats. The visiting team has dropped seven players, including Mohammad Rizwan, Imam-ul-Haq, Salman Ali Agha, Ali Usman, and Khurram Shehzad, ahead of the final Test. They have called up five new uncapped cricketers and parted ways with Sarfaraz Ahmed, replacing him with white-ball coach Mike Hesson.
England’s squad includes: Joe Root (captain), Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Sony Baker, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Sam Cook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Jamie Smith, and Josh Tongue.