Will Jacks has been drafted into England’s XI for Thursday’s second Ashes Test in Brisbane, three years after his last appearance in whites and with the tourists already 1-0 down.
The Surrey all-rounder comes in for the injured Mark Wood and will operate as the only frontline spinner under the Gabba lights. Jacks, 27, won two caps in Pakistan back in 2022, claiming 6 for 161 on debut in Rawalpindi, but has played just five first-class matches across the past two summers. Should he strike in Brisbane it will be his 50th first-class wicket, a reminder that his elevation is as much about batting depth as it is outright spin.
Head coach Brendon McCullum worked closely with Jacks during last summer’s white-ball fixtures, a period that ended with a two-year central contract in October. Selectors believe that extra polish, plus the off-spinner’s power with the bat, gives the side a better balance for the pink-ball contest.
Shoaib Bashir, meanwhile, steps aside for the first time since establishing himself as Ben Stokes’ preferred spinner at the start of the 2024 home summer. The 21-year-old, admired by Stokes since the captain spotted a social-media clip of him bowling to Alastair Cook on debut for Somerset, broke a finger at Lord’s in July yet still claimed the winning wicket that day. He has 68 Test wickets at 39.00 but no county deal after his Somerset contract expired; a central deal keeps him on the ECB payroll but, for now, out of the side.
England’s decision also nods to local conditions. Nathan Lyon’s 43 wickets at 25.62 in 13 pink-ball Tests have underlined the value of a spinner who can maintain pressure while seamers rest. Stokes explained the move in typically pragmatic fashion:
“Talking about the tactical element of a day-night game, you do try to look at Australia. They play a lot of day-night cricket here, how they use their spinner as an attacking option, or more to give the bowlers an easier rotation and to get through the overs quicker to have more time with the new ball under lights. There’s both those elements we will consider with how a spinner is to be used in a day/night game.”
Jacks’ own red-ball numbers this year – five wickets at 38.80 in three Championship outings – hardly leap off the page, but his ability to score quickly was deemed vital after England’s top order mis-fired during the series opener in Perth. The tourists also feel his flatter trajectory could suit the Kookaburra ball once it softens.
England’s exact bowling configuration will become clear at the toss, though the expectation is three quicks alongside Jacks, Stokes offering short bursts if his knee allows. Whatever the final shape, the gamble is plain: back a lightly-used off-spinner to hold the game when the pink ball goes quiet, and trust his bat to add runs that never felt entirely bankable a week ago.
Whether that blend brings parity in the series or leaves England further adrift will be known soon enough; for Jacks, simply hearing his name read out again counts as a small victory in itself.
