Foakes returns to England for first India Test

Jonny Bairstow will play as a specialist hitter after Harry Brook left the tour for personal reasons.

The tourists could pick three front-row spinners on what appears to be a dry surface.

But uncapped Shoaib Bashir is permanently out after returning to the UK to resolve visa issues.

It is probably more likely that England opt for just two pace spinners in James Anderson and Mark Wood . , with Joe Root also offering his part-time breaks.

Jack Leach, the in-form left-armer. will play, leaving perhaps a choice between Rehan Ahmed, the leg-spinner who made his Pakistan debut last winter, and Lancashire's uncapped left-armer Tom Hartley, with Hartley appearing to have the advantage.

Hartley, 24, of Lancashire, took 40 wickets in 20 first-class matches and also played in two matches one-day internationals for England.

"Tom is a very tall person," Stokes said. "He plays at a pace that's very difficult to manage here.

"He's someone who gets a a lot of natural variation which in India is sometimes the hardest thing to deal with where you have two identical balls, ball after ball, and one turns square and then the other can slip and speed up. "

Brook left the squad after England's training camp in Abu Dhabi after learned of a problem at home. He could return later in the five-game series.

Despite Brook's prolific form, his absence simplifies a selection decision for England Ollie Pope returns to number three after recovering from a dislocated shoulder, with Foakes behind the stumps to play his first Test since the tour of New Zealand last February.

The Surrey man was left out during the summer at home, as Bairstow was handed the gloves to allow England to pack their batting.

However, the superior quality of Foakes' gloves - Stokes once called him the best wicketkeeper in the world - will be a huge asset in India, where keepers have to spend long periods on their feet. to the stumps on unpredictable pitches.

"He can not only do things that other keepers cannot can't do, but it also makes them incredibly easy," Stokes said.

"It's a very special talent behind there and to have someone like that who can maybe take a 2%, 3% chance, that could be huge in the series."

For Stokes, the The series opener will be his first competitive cricket since undergoing surgery for a long-term left knee problem in November. The 32-year-old had stitches in his meniscus and had bone spurs removed.

He is unlikely to bowl in this series - summer at home is a more realistic goal to return to his usual role as an all-rounder. With Stokes unable to play, England will rely on Root, with the captain even suggesting that Root could take the new ball in the right circumstances.

Stokes, who also lost weight in order to eat...