England recall Keaton Jennings and Ben Foakes for Sri Lanka tour

England have recalled opener Keaton Jennings and wicketkeeper-batsman Ben Foakes for next month’s Sri Lanka tour.

Neither has played for England in a Test since the tour of the West Indies at the start of 2019.

James Anderson, England’s leading Test wicket-taker, is omitted as he recovers from a cracked rib suffered in the 3-1 series win in South Africa.

Batsman Jonny Bairstow and all-rounder Moeen Ali will also miss the two-Test series, which starts on 19 March.

Jofra Archer had already been ruled out because of a low-grade stress fracture in his right elbow, but fellow fast bowler Mark Wood will make the trip.

Left-arm spinner Jack Leach came back to England from the tour of South Africa in January because of illness but returns to the squad of 16 players.

“The South Africa tour marked the emergence of a very exciting group of young players, creating a nice balance with an experienced core of senior players,” said national selector Ed Smith.

“That squad is mostly retained, with some tweaks relevant to injury, rest and the challenges of playing in subcontinent conditions.

“Jonny Bairstow has been in England squads across the three formats without a significant break. This two-Test tour presents a good opportunity for Jonny to be rested.

“Moeen Ali is still unavailable for Test selection. The selectors are in consistent dialogue with Moeen and he remains a valued player in England cricket.”

England Test squad: Joe Root (Yorkshire) captain, Dominic Bess (Somerset), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Zak Crawley (Kent), Sam Curran (Surrey), Joe Denly (Kent), Ben Foakes (Surrey), Keaton Jennings (Lancashire), Jack Leach (Somerset), Matthew Parkinson (Lancashire), Ollie Pope (Surrey), Dominic Sibley (Warwickshire), Ben Stokes (Durham) vice-captain, Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham)