Robinson and Archer receive England call ups

Sussex fast bowlers, Jofra Archer and Ollie Robinson have been selected in the England Men's squad for the opening two Rothesay Tests against Pakistan.

Archer, who has been a regular in the test side since his return for the India series back in 2025, has taken 71 test wickets for England and impressed recently in the series against New Zealand, taking 11 wickets across his two games.

Robinson joins up with new captain, Joe Root and his squad following career best test figures of 5-39 against the Kiwis back in June. Despite being left out of the side for the following two tests, the fast bowler will be hoping to kick on from where he left off, having taken 18 first class wickets for the Sharks in an impressive Rothesay County Championship campaign.

The fast bowling pair will join up with the side following the conclusion of the One Day Cup and The Hundred for the three game series which begins on 19th August at Headingley.

Full ECB Press Release:

England Men have named a 16-player squad for the opening two Rothesay Tests against Pakistan. The series begins at Headingley on Wednesday 19 August.

England Men’s Test squad (16 player):

Joe Root (Yorkshire – captain)
Jofra Archer (Sussex)
Gus Atkinson (Surrey)
Shoaib Bashir (Derbyshire)
Harry Brook (Yorkshire)
Brydon Carse (Durham)
Sam Cook (Essex)
Jordan Cox (Essex)
Ben Duckett (Nottinghamshire)
Matthew Fisher (Surrey)
Emilio Gay (Durham)
Dan Lawrence (Surrey)
Ollie Pope (Surrey)
Ollie Robinson (Sussex)
Jamie Smith (Surrey)
Josh Tongue (Nottinghamshire)

Dan Lawrence, the second-leading runscorer in Division One of the Rothesay County Championship this season, is recalled two years after his most recent Test appearance against Sri Lanka and is set to bat at six.

Jordan Cox, who made his Test debut earlier this summer against New Zealand at the Kia Oval, is to bat at three in place of the injured Jacob Bethell.
Bethell sustained a right knee injury during the Metro Bank ODI series against India last month and is set to be sidelined for the entirety of the Rothesay Test Series against Pakistan.

Sam Cook is also included having played one Test against Zimbabwe last summer, while Brydon Carse and Ollie Pope return for the first time since last winter’s Ashes Series defeat in Australia.

Joe Root will captain the Test team in a permanent capacity for the first time since 2022 in front of his home crowd at Headingley.

England Men National Selector, Marcus North, said: “We have selected a squad for the first two Tests that balances rising talent with the experience needed against a quality Pakistan team.

“Dan Lawrence returns following an exceptional season so far with Surrey and we believe he has the right level of experience, maturity and skill to complement our middle order."

“Jordan Cox is well regarded as one of the most exciting talents in English cricket and will have the opportunity to bat at 3 in place of Jacob Bethell, who sadly misses this series through injury.”