Bess named in England squad, Moeen left out

All-rounder Ben Stokes will lead England in the match, which will begin at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on Wednesday, in a bio-secure environment amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Moeen announced last September that he was taking a break from Test cricket after losing out on a central contract for the longest format, but was included in a 30-man training group.

However, ECB opted to go with off-spinner Bess, who grabbed his first five-wicket Test haul against South Africa in January. Fellow spinner Jack Leach is among the reserves for the opening game of the three-match series. All-rounder Sam Curran, who was cleared to resume training after testing negative for COVID-19, was also placed on stand-by.

Regular skipper Joe Root will miss the first Test to be at the birth of his second child. The second and third Tests will be played in Manchester.

ENGLAND SQUAD: Ben Stokes (captain), James Anderson, Jofra Archer, Dominic Bess, Stuart Broad, Rory Burns, Jos Buttler, Zak Crawley, Joe Denly, Ollie Pope, Dom Sibley, Chris Woakes and Mark Wood.

RESERVES: James Bracey, Sam Curran, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Jack Leach, Saqib Mahmood, Craig Overton, Ollie Robinson and Olly Stone.