England skipper Ben Stokes explained the decision to include Josh Tongue in the playing XI for the third Ashes Test, which starts on December 17 at the Adelaide Oval.
Tongue has been included in place of Gus Atkinson. Despite having played a limited number of matches, Tongue has made a name for himself as a proven wicket-taker, and Stokes highlighted his wicket-taking prowess.
“There are a few angles [to selection], like getting a fresh bowler in for the batters to have a look at,” Stokes told reporters in Adelaide. “We feel that what Tonguey possesses – in terms of the angles he creates at the crease and his natural wicket-taking ability – is something that is going to help us this week.”
Atkinson failed to make an impact with the ball in the series, managing only three wickets in 54 overs. The Surrey-based bowler has not been at his best, but Stokes feels he has been unlucky not to take more wickets.
“It’s a huge ask for any seamer to be able to play five games,” he said. “Gus has bowled very well out here. He’s just been incredibly unlucky, particularly with the new ball; I don’t think he’s had the luck he’s deserved.”
Tongue has taken 31 wickets in his first six Tests at an impressive strike rate of 44.1. His ability to bowl game-breaking spells has masked the fact that he can be expensive, conceding more than four runs per over, as he tends to take wickets at crucial junctures of the game.
“With Tonguey, that natural wicket-taking ability he has is something we feel is useful to turn to,” Stokes said. “We’ve seen it in his career so far: regardless of how things are going in a spell or over the course of a day, he can suddenly take a cluster of wickets or an important wicket out of nowhere.”
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