Josh Tongue has come a long way, from the brink of retirement following debilitating injury problems and is now poised to make his Ashes debut for England against Australia at Lord’s.
The Worcestershire seamer, who made his Test debut against Ireland earlier this month, recently added Steve Smith to his impressive list of scalps in the County Championship.
Tongue took a five-for in the second innings against Ireland at Lord’s, with overall match figures on his Test debut of 5-106 from 34 overs at 3.11.
The 25-year-old has already proven his worth on the domestic scene with some big-name scalps, including Hashim Amla.
The seamer impressed during the Lions’ tour of Sri Lanka over the winter and will look to capitalise on Ben Stokes’ decision to opt for an all-pace attack with Moeen Ali not selected after a troubling hand injury.
Tongue has an extra yard of pace on the domestic circuit and caught the eye of the selectors, perhaps with a nod to the future with James Anderson now 40 and Stuart Broad 36.
“We have been monitoring Josh [Tongue] for quite some time and he deserves this call-up to the Test squad,” England men’s national selector Luke Wright said after his initial call into the group.
“It will be a great experience for him to understand and get used to the environment under Ben [Stokes] and Brendon [McCullum].
“It is important to have players ready to respond and with a big summer of Test cricket coming up, we will need that depth to our squad.”
Tongue burst onto the scene early, making his England under-19 Test debut and first representing the England Lions aged just 19 in his debut season.
He boasts a bowling average of 26.04 in first-class cricket, having taken 162 wickets in just 47 matches.
In 2019, Tongue was first hit by a nerve tissue problem in his arm that affected him for more than a year, including two operations, and he only made his return in 2022.
The injury was so severe there were questions over whether his career would continue, but the bowler who made three appearances for the England Lions before his injury, but he now stands on the brink of an Ashes debut.
