No home England return for Hampshire skipper

The Hampshire skipper was released from the national squad on Wednesday '“ 24 hours before the start of the fourth Test against India.

He was called up as cover for Jonny Bairstow, who will now play as a specialist batsman with Jos Buttler taking the gloves.

Meanwhile, England skipper Joe Root has welcomed Moeen Ali back into the fold.

The all-rounder has not played for England since the third one-day international against India at Headingley on July 17.

Since then he has hit a ton and claimed two five-wicket hauls for Worcestershire.

Skipper Root said: '˜Moeen's in fine form. What you want from international players is for them to go back to their county and prove a point.

'˜That's exactly what Moeen has done in the last couple of weeks. He seems in a really good place, so that's a good sign for England moving forward.

'˜And it's good for him as he has obviously gone away and worked really hard at his game.'

England are seeking to wrap up the series with an unassailable 3-1 lead but they are unlikely to risk Chris Woakes, who is nursing a sore right thigh.

Sam Curran is ready to step in for the Warwickshire man, while Root confirmed Buttler would take the gloves from Bairstow.

The skipper added: '˜It was a medical call. Jonny didn't seem fit to be able to keep 100 per cent in a Test match for five days and that was the call that was made.

'˜He will be disappointed but ultimately we've got to make sure we do the best thing for this team to win this game and I believe Jos is the right man to do it this time.'

England captain Root is confident his side can bounce back from last week's 203-run defeat at Nottingham in the third Test.

He added: '˜It's a big week, no doubt. We under-performed last week and that's the bottom line. But we have a great opportunity to put that right this time around.

'˜I think one of our big strengths as a squad is our strength of character and, at home in particular, we're very good at bouncing back after difficult weeks.

'˜We've done it time and time again before and we don't expect anything less from the group this time as well.'

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