Olly Stone replaces Mark Wood for the Lords Test

Olly Stone, the right-arm fast bowler, has been added to the England squad for the 2nd Test against Sri Lanka after Mark Wood was ruled out of the series due to a thigh injury. In place of the star bowler, the England and Wales Cricket Board has announced Olly Stone as the replacement for the 2nd Test against Sri Lanka, which will start on 29th August at the iconic Lord's Cricket Ground in London. The English team is currently leading the 3-match Test series 1-0 after defeating the Lankan Lions in the first match of the series by 5 wickets at Old Trafford in Manchester.

Heading into the 2nd Test match of the series, the ECB announced Olly Stone as the replacement for the injured Mark Wood, who sustained a series-ending thigh injury during the third day of the Old Trafford Test. Stone will make a comeback for the England national team after 2021.

It should be noted that Stone was not the team's first choice, as they initially considered Leicestershire's Josh Hull as Wood's replacement. However, the English cricket team ultimately decided to go with Stone's experience in the Test format, which they believe will help them dominate the Sri Lankan team at Lord's.

The right-arm fast bowler was part of the initial squad but was released to play County Championship matches. He replaced uncapped pacer Dillon Pennington, who had to withdraw due to a hamstring injury.

Stone has played three Tests for England and has taken 10 wickets at an impressive average of 19.40. However, England has been dealing with multiple injury setbacks ahead of this match. Besides Wood, captain Ben Stokes and opener Zak Crawley also faced injuries, making things challenging for the English team.

England XI for the Second Test vs Sri Lanka:

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