Ben Foakes called up as Jonny Bairstow cover

England have called up Surrey's Ben Foakes as cover for Test wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow, who damaged ankle ligaments while playing football during the one-day series with Sri Lanka.

Bairstow was ruled out of the final ODI in Colombo on Tuesday, and will miss Saturday's one-off T20 international, and must be considered a doubt for the first Test, which begins in Galle in little under two weeks. England play two two-day warm-up games in Colombo, starting on October 30, with Bairstow expected to be assessed before then.

If he is unfit, Jos Buttler would likely be the preferred candidate to take the gloves, deputising as he did during the India series after Bairstow fractured a finger at the Ageas Bowl. Buttler has been playing as a specialist batsman coming in at No. 7 since his Test recall in May, with Bairstow reluctant to give up the gloves despite batting higher in the order.

Foakes, who will arrive in Sri Lanka at the weekend, has yet to win a cap in any format for England, despite touring Australia last winter as back-up gloveman for the Ashes. He is regarded as being among the best wicketkeepers currently in the game, whilst also good enough with the bat to average 40.64 in first-class cricket.

It is understood the England team management in Sri Lanka have felt for some time that Foakes should be in the side for the Galle Test, where spin is expected to play a large part and the demands on the keeper standing up to the stumps are likely to be great. It seems the selectors in England, concerned perhaps at how Foakes' presence might play on the mind of Bairstow or Buttler, were less keen but have now agreed.

England do already have two potential back-up keepers in the Test squad, in the Surrey pair of Rory Burns and Ollie Pope. But Burns, who is likely to make his debut at opener, has only ever kept wicket in three first-class matches, while Pope, 20, has done so in four.

Bairstow's absence would put further pressure on an inconsistent Test batting line-up, as England prepare to field a team without Alastair Cook for the first time in almost 13 years. The top three could feature two debutants, with Joe Denly also vying for inclusion, while Pope, with two caps, would be a candidate to fill in as a batsman for Bairstow.