Follow UsOne of England’s domestic cricket powerhouses will be making his Test comeback after an eight-year hiatus as Liam Dawson has been added to the England squad for the fourth Test against India at Old Trafford. Dawson, 35, made his Test debut against India in 2016, but only made three appearances with his last coming against South Africa in 2017.
Since his last appearance in Test cricket, the 35-year-old has taken 196 wickets @ 26 in first-class cricket and has also scored 4,051 runs at an average of 38.
Dawson had, in recent years, prioritised white-ball cricket over Tests but he is set to make a sensational comeback at Old Trafford, taking the place of the injured Shoaib Bashir, who has been ruled out of the remainder of the India series.
"Liam Dawson deserves his call-up. He has been in outstanding form in the County Championship and consistently puts in strong performances for Hampshire,” England Men’s National Selector Luke Wright said.
So far in 2025, in the County Division One for Hampshire, Dawson has taken 8 wickets at 34.8 with the ball while he has hammered 222 runs at an average of 74 with the bat. He will further add to England’s lower-order strength with the bat in hand.
Meanwhile, fast bowlers Sam Cook and Jamie Overton, who were with the team for the Lord’s Test, have been released from the squad to play County Cricket for their respective clubs.
The fourth Test will be played at Old Trafford from July 23. England lead the five-match series 2-1 on the back of a famous win at Lord's.
Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes.