England look to build on positives from Lord's

Overview

England v Australia, 3rd Ashes Test
Headingley, Leeds
22 August, 11:00am local, 10:00am GMT

Trailing 0-1 in the five-match series with a loss and a draw to their name, England will be keen to level the series in Leeds.

While they have gone with the same 12-man squad for the Test, head coach Trevor Bayliss conceded that they might reconsider their batting line-up. With Jason Roy struggling at the top of the order, the hosts might consider opening with skipper Joe Root or Jonny Bairstow, who assumes that role in their white-ball cricket. James Anderson is still not in the mix for the third Test; he will instead play for Lancashire's second XI, where his performance will be assessed.

Steve Smith's absence, as he recovers from a concussion, comes as a blow to Australia. Marnus Labuschagne notched up an impressive 59 after being called up as a substitute at Lord's, but he will have huge shoes to fill: Smith is the highest run-scorer in the series, and has largely been the difference between the two sides so far. Josh Hazlewood's strong return is a positive for the visitors. Australia now have to decide whether to bring in James Pattinson or Mitchell Starc, while giving another pacer a rest.

Remember the last time

The second Test at Lord's saw a thrilling finish, despite much of the Test being lost to rain. Smith starred in the first innings with a fighting 92, while Archer enjoyed a memorable debut. In cricket's first-ever like-for-like substitution for a concussion, Labuschangne replaced Smith after the former captain was hit on the head by an Archer bouncer in the first innings. Rory Burns appears settled at the top of the order, while Pat Cummins and Hazlewood made fiery comebacks to the Australian XI.

What they said

Trevor Bayliss, England head coach: "We think we've got the best seven batters available to us at the moment in England ... Whether we can change it round and make [the batting line-up] any better, I'm not sure, but we'll certainly have a discussion about it."

Travis Head, Australia batsman: "There was some stuff I was not so happy about with my batting [at Lord's] but there was some stuff that was really good, so it's just trying to make sure of the good stuff for longer and doing more it more consistently."

Conditions

The forecast indicates scattered showers for the first day. Rain is expected to stay away for the remainder of the Test. Historically, pacers have dominated at Headingley, with Fred Trueman and Stuart Broad heading the charts for leading wicket-takers in Tests.