Ashes 2019: England replace Roy & Overton with Woakes & Curran for fifth Test at Oval

Ashes 2019: England focused on winning final Test - Joe Root

Men's Ashes: England v Australia, fifth Specsavers Test
Venue: The Oval Dates: 12-16 September Start time: 11:00 BST
BBC coverage: Ball-by-ball Test Match Special commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra, BBC Radio 4 LW, BBC Sport website & app; in-play clips and live text commentary on BBC Sport website & app

Jason Roy and Craig Overton have been dropped from the England team for the fifth Ashes Test at The Oval, with Sam Curran and Chris Woakes coming in.

Ben Stokes, unfit to bowl because of a shoulder injury, will play as a specialist batsman.

Batsman Roy has been omitted after scoring only 110 runs in eight Ashes innings, with a highest score of 31.

Australia have retained the Ashes after victory at Old Trafford gave them an unassailable 2-1 lead in the series.

Seamer Overton was recalled to the England side for the Old Trafford Test but finished with match figures of 2-107.

Surrey all-rounder Curran has impressed with the bat in his previous 10 Tests for England.

The 21-year-old also offers a different option for England's bowling attack with his left-arm medium pace.

Root said Stokes' injury had prompted Roy's omissions because the "balance" of the side needed to change.

"Jason's the unfortunate one to miss out," said Root. "He's had an opportunity to come in and play Test cricket, get a feel for it, and it's not quite gone how he would have liked."

Of Stokes, he said: "He might be able to bowl a couple of overs here and there, but his batting, as this series has shown, is a massive part of our side and he rightly deserves to be in this team as just a batter, and a top-four batter.

"So he will I'm sure want to find different ways of getting himself into the game, even if it's not with the ball."

Australia, searching for a first series win in England since 2001, have dropped middle-order batsman Travis Head for all-rounder Mitchell Marsh.

Marsh scored two centuries in the Ashes series in Australia in 2017-18.

England team for fifth Ashes Test: Joe Root (c), Jofra Archer, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Sam Curran, Joe Denly, Jack Leach, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes

Australia: David Warner, Marcus Harris, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Mitch Marsh, Matthew Wade, Tim Paine (c, wk), Pat Cummins, Peter Siddle, Mitch Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood

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641 comments

Comment posted by Centuryclub, at 13:38 11 Sep 2019
Pope & Foakes should have been given a chance to revitalise a jaded looking team.
Comment posted by B4N, at 13:38 11 Sep 2019
timely reminder that Jos Buttler has one test century in 62 innings
Comment posted by chiefmatt, at 13:41 11 Sep 2019
Sam Curran a good choice with Stokes probably unable to bowl. Our batting problems won't go away until they take the Championship seriously and put 4 day games regularly in July / August...which won't happen because of The Hundred, meaning they'll have to make do with games in April and Sept with the ball hooping round corners.
Comment posted by U17812270, at 13:41 11 Sep 2019
Long overdue for Curran, I like Roy but he doesn’t look to have it at Test Match level. I don’t know why Woakes was dropped in the first place. Good luck England and keep Warner out of the runs again.
Comment posted by Murder on Varanes Floor, at 13:39 11 Sep 2019
As Buttler is not keeping, time to swap for a proper test batsman.
Comment posted by Neil, at 13:39 11 Sep 2019
Right decision, but far too late.
Comment posted by Woodie, at 13:41 11 Sep 2019
A modicum of sense two tests too late.
Comment posted by Jobyfox, at 13:56 11 Sep 2019
We need to find another batsman, not bowlers or all rounders. We preferably need to find one who can face up to the new ball.

Woakes should never have been dropped & hasn’t been used right in my opinion. He should take the new ball with Broad when the ball is moving. Archer will get it to do something anytime & should be told to just bowl flat out, in short spells - that’s what he’s there for
Comment posted by OffTheBat, at 13:39 11 Sep 2019
Too little too late
Comment posted by Obi One Kenobi Nil, at 13:41 11 Sep 2019
Talk about too little too late. Curran should have been given a shot in this ashes long ago.

I’m at the point of hoping we get a real hammering in this next test. I feel it will be the only way English test cricket gets the shake up it needs. Including a total overhaul of the dire selection policy.
Comment posted by imran, at 13:52 11 Sep 2019
England Selectors “let’s bring in a perfectly set one day Batsman, throw him in a volatile ashes situation, mess his up mentally and wreck his form, chew him up and then throw him out” bravo! Bravo! Long may it continue!
Comment posted by Ian, at 13:54 11 Sep 2019
The selection for this Ashes series reminds me of the way the England football team was selected under Sven Goran Eriksson... square pegs in round holes, injured and out of form players selected on name / reputation and the "less fashionable" options ignored. It never works. Pick a balanced team of fit players in strong form. It shouldn't be too tough should it?
Comment posted by old_one_eye, at 13:54 11 Sep 2019
It's all ok though - because the captain's mate is still safe. Good to see Curran in and Woakes back but what does Bairstow have to do to get dropped. He's shown a complete contempt for the format and for his team-mates with the way he's batted this Test summer. What must Foakes be thinking?

Please Ed Smith - just go before you ruin us for a generation. It feels like the 90's again.
Comment posted by Dougal1925, at 13:52 11 Sep 2019
Woakes has been one of our best players this summer. He was unlucky to be excluded last time.
Comment posted by Derek Colwell, at 14:56 11 Sep 2019
Only England could drop a batsman for a bowler and still strengthen the batting
Comment posted by RDW_SW, at 13:41 11 Sep 2019
Would have given Pope and Foakes the nod over Bairstow and Buttler too. The Ashes are gone but we can still stop that lot from winning their first series over here in nearly 20 years so still something for England to play for.
Comment posted by scp987, at 13:58 11 Sep 2019
Roy doesn't have the temperament to count to 100, let alone score a Test ton. Well overdue. Feel for Overton, maybe limited in the talent department but at least applies himself.
Comment posted by afg, at 13:46 11 Sep 2019
Not enough. Still not addressing the Bairstow and Buttler issue.
Comment posted by kapnag, at 14:27 11 Sep 2019
Roy is in and out, Bairstow can average 20 over last 2 years and no-one says a thing
Comment posted by UrbanFox, at 14:03 11 Sep 2019
Shame you can only drop 2!!!

Bairstow and Buttler extremely lucky. They owe the team big time!

Feel for Foakes, Pope, Sibley what else must they do???!!!

Come the winter overseas tours I expect a major reshuffle, we need a longer term plan for next Ashes and how to regain them!

Top order batting again under the microscope, also Captain has to be relieved of burden of captaincy!!