With Ollie Robinson likely to be rested for the Lord's match starting on June 1, England have added the 25-year-old to their 16-strong group for the four-day game
Josh Tongue has been handed his maiden England call-up for the four-day Test against Ireland at Lord's.
The 25-year-old is added to a 16-strong group for the match starting on June 1.
Tongue has taken 162 wickets in 47 first-class matches - 11 of which have come in this season's County Championship for Worcestershire.
News of the call-up comes with Ollie Robinson likely to sit out the match following a scan on an ankle issue. Though given the all-clear, England are expected to urge on the side of caution ahead of the Ashes starting on June 16.
"The invaluable experience I gained during the winter as part of the Lions team has given me the hunger to represent my country in more international cricket matches and obviously the next step is Test cricket," said Tongue.
"While my focus has primarily been on playing for Worcestershire, who I love playing for, the news of my selection for the Test squad is fantastic news."
On Australia's last visit to England for an Ashes tour, Tongue dismissed Cameron Bancroft (pictured) and Usman Khawaja during a three-day tour match (Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)
Men's national selector Luke Wright added: "We have been monitoring Josh for quite some time and he deserves this call-up to the Test squad. 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. We wish Josh and the rest of the squad well for the first international of the campaign."
Ascent to full international recognition comes after Tongue came close to calling time on the sport due to a shoulder nerve issue which cost him 15 months of his professional career.
It was only a third consultation with a specialist, which found a solution to his long-running problems, that prevented him from turning his back on cricket altogether.
After returning to the Worcestershire side for their final three Championship matches of 2022 he was a surprise call-up for the red-ball leg of the England Lions tour of Sri Lanka in February. He played the second unofficial Test in Galle, finishing with match figures of 8 for 153.
Fit for the start of the new season, Tongue has played in four of Worcestershire's six Championship matches, with best figures of 3 for 37 against Gloucestershire at New Road.
Tongue was a key part of Worcestershire's promotion to Division One in 2017, taking 47 wickets (Stu Forster/Getty Images)
However, he was omitted from the squad that faced Leicestershire in the seventh round of four-day cricket, with head coach Alan Richardson citing "a few niggly injury problems". Alongside fitness concerns over Dillon Pennington and Pat Brown, it provoked the Pears into securing a loan deal for Jack Brooks from Somerset.
Richardson said of the call-up for the academy graduate, who first played for the club aged six in the Under-10s: "It fills us with great delight to witness Josh's moment, which is truly well-deserved after the tremendous amount of effort he has invested in his recovery.
"For all of us at Worcestershire, it is an incredibly proud moment to witness the growth of a player who has been part of our talent pathway since the tender age of six, now graduate through to the highest level of the sport."
While Robinson's ankle problem is not thought to be a long-term concern, it once again sees England dip into their bowling stocks to provide cover. Jofra Archer is already ruled out for the whole summer, Olly Stone will miss the opening Ashes Test while the red-ball summer is likely to come too soon for Jamie Overton who is not yet fit to bowl in his recovery from a stress fracture to his spine.
Those overlooked include Essex's Sam Cook and Matthew Fisher of Yorkshire - who were both part of the Lions tour in Sri Lanka. Lancashire's Saqib Mahmood, who made his Test debut in the West Indies last year, also misses out.
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