England have rung the changes as they seek to keep the Ashes alive in this week’s third Test at Headingley, with three alterations to the team and a promotion for Harry Brook.

Brook is slated to step up to number three in place of Ollie Pope, whose summer is over due to a dislocated shoulder, while Moeen Ali, Mark Wood and Chris Woakes all return to the bowling attack.

Record wicket-taker James Anderson is dropped after two modest performances, with Josh Tongue also left out despite an encouraging outing at Lord’s.

At 2-0 down with three to play, England are in now-or-never territory and have opted to overhaul not just the personnel, but the balance of their side.

While they are effectively one specialist batter down in Pope’s absence, the addition of Ali and Woakes strengthens the lower order in response.

Lancashire Telegraph: James Anderson, right, and Ben Stokes chat during trainingJames Anderson, right, and Ben Stokes chat during training (Image: PA)

Wood’s belated introduction into the series – he was considered for last week’s second Test but there were some concerns over his workload – also gives England skipper Ben Stokes the express pace option he has been craving.

Stuart Broad and Ollie Robinson top the wicket charts with 11 and 10 respectively, but England have been outmatched for air speed so far and Wood’s ability to hit up to 96mph gives Stokes a new weapon to unsettle the tourists.

Woakes makes his first appearance of the ‘Bazball’ era and Ali is back in action after a badly-blistered right index finger saw him miss out at Lord’s, after coming out of retirement for the Edgbaston opener.

Stokes admitted his own ongoing fitness issues played a part in the team selection, after he defied his knee problems to bowl a mammoth 12-over spell and then turned in a remarkable 155 in the fourth innings.

Lancashire Telegraph: Chris Woakes, Mark Wood and Moeen Ali have been called up England for the third testChris Woakes, Mark Wood and Moeen Ali have been called up England for the third test (Image: PA)

The all-rounder said: “I’m not going to lie, last week took it out of me and a big part of what I had to think about was what would be the best team if I didn’t bowl a ball. That was a huge part of my thinking."

As for Brook’s promotion to an unfamiliar position he only briefly filled earlier in his career at Yorkshire, and with limited returns, he said: “It’s pretty simple for us to be honest. A player like Brooky, it feels like he can slot in any position.

“We feel Brooky is a type of player who can just take responsibility and crack on with it. We want to keep Joe (Root) at number four, he’s a remarkable player.”