Stokes ruled out as England name new captain for final India Test

England captain Ben Stokes has been ruled out of the fifth and final Test against India due to a right shoulder injury, with Ollie Pope named as stand-in captain for the deciding Test at The Oval.

Stokes injured his shoulder during the fourth Test, where he picked up five wickets in the first innings and scored a marathon 141 when batting.

While the star all-rounder had hinted in the post-match press conference that he would likely be available for the final Test, the shoulder issue has now ruled him out of the series finale.

The hosts have opted to freshen up their bowling attack after spending more than 250 overs in the field during the previous Test, with only Chris Woakes retaining his place from the hard-fought drawn game in Manchester.

With a quick turnaround between matches, Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse and Liam Dawson have been left out of the Playing XI, making way for Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue and Jacob Bethell.

Atkinson returns after recovering from a right hamstring injury sustained during the one-off Test against Zimbabwe in May, while Tongue is back, having featured in the first two matches of the series. Bethell, replacing Dawson, is expected to lead the spin department with support from Joe Root.

Jamie Overton too makes the cut, having been added to the squad after the fourth Test.

England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (C), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue.

Speaking on the injury, Stokes said, "I'm obviously disappointed. I've got a decent tear in the right shoulder. Weighing up the risk and reward, the risk was way too high for the damage caused.

"I'll start rehabbing now and start to focus on what we have coming up in the winter."

England head into the final Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy with a 2-1 lead in a series where the decider could ultimately prove pivotal for both teams’ World Test Championship aspirations.