Adelaide: The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) on Monday announced the men’s playing XI for the must-win third Ashes Test against Australia, starting on December 17 at the Adelaide Oval.
Trailing 2-0 in the blockbuster five-match away series, the tour team made just one change, replacing Gus Atkinson with Josh Dunk.
Atkinson has struggled on the Australian tour as he can only take three wickets in the first two matches at a poor bowling average of 78.66, the worst among England bowlers.
Meanwhile, Dungu, who has represented England in six Tests since his debut in 2023, has taken 31 wickets in the longer format at an average of 30.
His last appearance for the Three Lions was in the final of the Anderson–Tendulkar Trophy against India, which ended in August, and he last played against Australia in the last Ashes at Lord’s, where he took five wickets in two innings, including dismissing Steve Smith twice.
Although Dungu managed to take only two wickets in the tour matches, despite what was expected to be a spin-friendly pitch, England preferred him over Shoaib Basheer, prompting Australia to bring back their veteran off-spinner Nathan Lyon.
Notably, despite their struggles in the batting department, England decided not to make any changes after head coach Brendan McCullum publicly backed their front seven.
England Playing XI: Zach Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (week), Will Jacks, Bryden Garse, Jofra Archer and Josh Dungu.
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