Sam Cook confirmed for Test debut as England name XI to face Zimbabwe

Sam Cook, the Essex seamer, will make his Test debut against Zimbabwe on Thursday, after his place in the XI was confirmed by England's head coach, Brendon McCullum, two days out from the contest at Trent Bridge.

Cook, 27, will take his place in a seam attack that also features a return to action for Josh Tongue, the Nottinghamshire quick who impressed in two Tests at Lord's in 2023 but has been sidelined with injury for much of the past two years.

"I'm obviously very excited about getting the nod and getting out there," Cook told reporters at Trent Bridge. "It's any young cricketer's dream to pull on the Test shirt for England. So it's something hopefully that comes to fruition and I'm really, really looking forward to it."

Cook's credentials have been plain to see on the county circuit for years. His current haul of 321 first-class wickets has come at an average of just 19.85, while in the past five seasons for Essex, he has claimed 227 County Championship wickets, the most by any seamer.

However, in an era when England have tended to favour bowlers who touch speeds in excess of 90mph, or release the ball from an unusual trajectory, he might have been forgiven for thinking his opportunities, as a more traditional wicket-to-wicket skills exponent, might never come to pass.

But, in the wake of James Anderson's Test retirement last summer, and with Chris Woakes unavailable due to a long-term injury that has kept him sidelined for Warwickshire, Cook has been handed his chance in a notably raw seam attack, comprising just 13 previous caps - 11 for Atkinson, and two for Tongue.

"I think I've been pretty positive," Cook insisted about having to wait for his opportunity. "In professional sport, you're going to have setbacks and injuries and that sort of thing, but always having that goal to work towards has made me still driven. I'm probably grateful for it, but it's not something I'd consider to have passed at any point."

Cook's chance also arose after he showed his commitment to the cause this winter, by withdrawing from a series of lucrative T20 franchise gigs in order to commit to the England Lions tour of Australia. He impressed in the one-off unofficial Test at Sydney in January, which further scotched any suggestion that his skills would not be suited to bowling with a Kookaburra ball in overseas conditions.

"I feel, at 27, a better cricketer for the experiences I've had in the game," he said. "I think the Lions programme and being in and around the Test set-up over the last few years has made that transition into the squad pretty seamless, and I felt very welcomed. The environment's been fantastic to be a part of. I'm just excited at the prospect of what's to come and trying to get stuck in and take some wickets."

Gus Atkinson, England's break-out star from the 2024 home summer will complete a trio of frontline seamers, with Shoaib Bashir retained as the spinner. Ben Stokes, England's Test captain, is also expected to play a part with the ball after undergoing hamstring surgery in January, in what will be his first competitive match since the Test tour of New Zealand in December.

Matthew Potts, who has also been named in England's white-ball squads to face West Indies later this month, misses out among the seamers, as does the spare batter, Somerset's James Rew, who was in turn a late replacement in the squad after Jordan Cox suffered a side strain while making a century for Essex earlier this month.

McCullum acknowledged the potential rawness of England's attack, but - speaking at the start of a seminal period that also comprises five home Tests against India followed by an away Ashes tour - reiterated his desire to expand the options available to his team.

"We've made made no secret of us wanting to build a battery of fast bowlers," he said, "knowing that when you're you're dealing at the elite level and you're asking guys to play at 100% and leave it all out there, there's going to be things which happen which means guys are going to miss out.

"For us to walk into this Test match week, I feel like we've got a nice varied attack. It's got some youth, and it's got some inexperience, but these guys have also been around this group now for a decent amount of time, and they know how to operate.

"And they know the messaging from us would be very simple: to go out there and look to try and take wickets, understand how to fulfil your role amongst the varied attack, and try and put pressure on the opposition, and at the same time, try and enjoy it because you are representing your country, and what a great opportunity these guys have got this week."

England XI: 1 Zak Crawley, 2 Ben Duckett, 3 Ollie Pope, 4 Joe Root, 5 Harry Brook, 6 Ben Stokes (capt), 7 James Smith (wk), 8 Gus Atkinson, 9 Josh Tongue, 10, Sam Cook, 11 Shoaib Bashir