Cox and Baker to make Test debuts at The Oval

Essex batter Jordan Cox and Hampshire fast bowler Sonny Baker will make their England Test debuts in the second Test against New Zealand starting on Wednesday at The Oval.

Surrey bowler Matthew Fisher will also play his second Test, more than four years after his first, while Jofra Archer returns for the first time this summer amid the chaos caused by injuries and the incident involving Ben Stokes and Gus Atkinson in a London nightclub last week.

There could be a fifth change from the first Test with Somerset's James Rew, who would be a third debutant in the XI, on standby to replace wicketkeeper Jamie Smith.

Smith's partner is due to give birth to their second child in the coming days, but the Surrey player was named in England's XI by coach Brendon McCullum on Monday.

Stokes and Atkinson were both left out of England's squad pending an investigation, after the pair broke the England team's midnight curfew and were present when a member of security staff was struck by a Saracens rugby player.

Bowler Ollie Robinson, who took seven wickets on a remarkable return to Test cricket at Lord's, is out with soreness in his right knee, while Baker comes in for Shoaib Bashir, with England opting against picking a spinner in their XI.

England XI for second Test: Ben Duckett, Emilio Gay, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root (capt), Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Jordan Cox, Jofra Archer, Josh Tongue, Matthew Fisher, Sonny Baker

Cox's Test debut is long-awaited. He would have played in New Zealand in 2024 but broke his thumb in the build-up.

He missed the start of the English season because of the Indian Premier League - Rew was England's spare batter and wicketkeeper for the first Test - but scored 204 from 201 balls for Essex against Leicestershire over the weekend.

McCullum said Cox had been preferred at number seven in Stokes' absence because of his "power and his rounded game", while Rew is viewed as a top-six batter.

A Test debut for Baker, a bustling bowler who can operate close to 90mph, comes after difficult 50-over and T20 international debuts last year.

He returned figures of 0-76 and 0-52 respectively, but has taken 22 wickets in six County Championship matches this season.

"I think the country is going to be behind him because he plays games a little bit like Mark Wood," McCullum said.

"He's got good air speed, he swings the ball, he's got great skills, but he charges in and he's got wild celebrations and you can just see that cricket is what he wants to do."

Fisher, who plays for Surrey at The Oval and provides a new-ball option in Robinson's absence, played one Test in West Indies in 2022 - the last series of Joe Root's captaincy before Stokes and McCullum took over.

McCullum admitted there has been "a bit of chaos" around the squad but said he was confident in the side picked.

"I look at that line-up we have this week and it's super exciting," he said.

"It doesn't guarantee us success but it's a first real test of where we're at. I'm quietly confident we're going to see some exciting cricket."

-BBC