England have named their 16-man squad for this winter’s Ashes against Australia with a few surprise decisions made.
Captain Ben Stokes will lead the tourists Down Under in their bid to regain the urn.
However, his chief support will not be Ollie Pope with the Surrey batsman being stripped of the vice-captaincy.
White ball skipper Harry Brook will instead take up the role for the tour and five-match Test series in Australia.
Pope had been vice-captain since 2023, serving in the position for the previous Ashes on home soil, which ended in a 2-2 draw.
There are also a string of recalls to the squad including all-rounder Will Jacks.
The 26-year-old is set to provide spin bowling support as he returns following a three-year exile from the side.
Jacks has not featured since the tour of Pakistan back in December 2022.
Across his two Test matches during the series, he took six wickets for 232 runs.
Despite his inclusion, Jacks will miss the white-ball tour of New Zealand prior to the Ashes due to a broken finger.
Matthew Potts has also been handed a recall for the first time since last December.
Elsewhere, Mark Wood has returned to the fold after recovering from a knee injury.
England squad for the 2025/26 Ashes
- Ben Stokes (Durham) – Captain
- Jofra Archer (Sussex)
- Gus Atkinson (Surrey)
- Shoaib Bashir (Somerset)
- Jacob Bethell (Warwickshire)
- Harry Brook (Yorkshire) – Vice-Captain
- Brydon Carse (Durham)
- Zak Crawley (Kent)
- Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire)
- Will Jacks (Surrey)
- Ollie Pope (Surrey)
- Matthew Potts (Durham)
- Joe Root (Yorkshire)
- Jamie Smith (Surrey)
- Josh Tongue (Nottinghamshire)
- Mark Wood (Durham)
Shoaib Bashir has also overcome the finger issue he sustained against India in the summer.
The biggest boost for England, though, is the inclusion of Stokes after he was forced out of the final Test against India at The Oval last month.
He is expected to be available in time for the first Test against Australia in November as he continues his recovery from a shoulder injury.
England will play three T20 Internationals and One-Day Internationals against New Zealand in October and November.
Their white-ball tour will be followed by a warm-up Test against England Lions in Perth between November 13 and 15.
The first Ashes Test will then begin six days later on November 21.
GettyEngland renew their rivalry with Australia in November as they aim for a first series win since 2015[/caption]
2025-26 Ashes Tour
November 13-15 – England vs England Lions, Perth
November 21-25 – England vs Australia – Perth
November 29-30 – England vs Prime Minister’s XI – Canberra
December 4-8 – England vs Australia – Brisbane
December 17-21 – England vs Australia – Adelaide
December 25-30 – England vs Australia – Melbourne
January 3-8 – England vs Australia – Sydney
England will be looking for their first series win against Australia since 2015.
Meanwhile, it is 15 years since their last victory Down Under, a 3-1 triumph across the winter of 2010 and 2011.
More to follow.
