ENG vs SL: Injured Mark Wood replaced by Josh Hull for the final two Tests

England pacer Mark Wood has sustained a thigh injury that has ruled him out of the remaining two Tests against Sri Lanka. To replace Wood, the Leicestershire left-arm seamer, Josh Hull, has received the maiden call-up after Wood’s unavailability. The 20-year-old’s 6’7” build makes him a potentially lethal weapon for England’s future pacer prospects.

Though his first-class record of 6 wickets at an average of 62.75 provides fewer peek into the pacer’s prowess, his performance in Metro Bank One-Day Club in Leicestershire’s win was much talked about. As Sri Lanka played a warm-up game ahead of the series, Hull impressed with five wickets across two innings debuting for England Lions.

“It was about half-nine last night when I got the call from Brendon McCullum. It’s a very special moment. It’s come around pretty quickly, I didn’t think it would happen this fast, but I am really excited to be joining them,” said Hull as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

“I was happy with how I performed [for England Lions] but I never thought it would lead to a call this early. They’ve got Olly Stone there as the first replacement, so it will be a great opportunity to join up and be part of that environment,” he added.

The young gun has only two scalps to his name in three Championship games this season. But the Cambridgeshire-born hit 90mph while debuting for Manchester Originals in The Hundred. Hull is currently playing in Leicestershire’s Championship fixture against Gloucestershire in Bristol. The debutant is expected to join the Three Lions on August 26 before the second Test commences on August 29.

England squad for final two Tests:

Ollie Pope (c), Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Harry Brook, Jordan Cox, Ben Duckett, Josh Hull, Dan Lawrence, Matthew Potts, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Olly Stone, Chris Woakes