Bowling changes considered as England prepare for third Test

With retention of the Wisden trophy already secured, England may choose to rotate their squad for the third and final Test against West Indies, which they are 4/11 to win.

Frontline seam bowlers appear the most susceptible to a possible rest, with a fixture pile-up set to take its toll on the squad in the coming months.

This would appear the most ample opportunity for Andrew Strauss to give fringe players a chance, with little to play for except the prospect of achieving a series whitewash.

Therefore, bearing in mind the respective recent injury problems of Stuart Broad and James Anderson, the England captain is considering relinquishing the pair of their duties for the upcoming Edgbaston test.

“We’ve always viewed resting and rotating as something you have to do on a case by case basis, so we’ll speak to the seamers, see how they’re feeling and see how we’re looking for the rest of the summer,” said Strauss.

Broad has struggled with a series of hand injury troubles over the past 18 months, whilst Anderson will not wish to aggravate the minor quad injury he sustained in the second Test at Trent Bridge.

However, each will hope to compete in order to bolster their own personal statistics, with their opponents looking shaky amidst a nine wicket defeat in the second Test.

Waiting in the wings should Strauss opt for change though, are the well-thought-of Steven Finn, along with long-time England absentee Graham Onions.

Finn is desperate to get another chance for England in the Test arena, after his career in that format has stalled somewhat, after he became the fastest player in England history to reach 50 Test wickets.

Meanwhile, Onions looks to be regaining his best form since a lengthy injury layoff, racking up his best bowling figures since 2009 for Durham last month, and would aim to replicate this sort of showing on the international stage.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.