Ollie Robinson left to wait his turn as England remain loyal to seamers in possession

GEORGE DOBELL: Robinson is back in England's squad, having not featured in the Test side since the final match of the Ashes in Hobart

Ollie Robinson will have to wait a little longer for an England return having been left out of the team for the first Test of the LV= Insurance series against South Africa.

While Ben Stokes, the England captain, was full of warm words for Robinson, he has been unable to break back into a team which has seen Matthew Potts establish himself as a first choice seamer.

England will field a very similar XI to that seen in their previous Test, against India at Edgbaston. The only change sees wicketkeeper Ben Foakes, who missed that game as he recovered from a bout of Covid, return in place of Sam Billings.

The seam attack will feature James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Potts with Ben Stokes in support and a spin attack of Jack Leach with Joe Root in support.

That means no room for Robinson, who has not featured in the Test side since the final match of the Ashes in Hobart. Despite an outstanding start to his Test career – he has claimed 39 wickets in nine Tests at a cost of 21.28 apiece – he has struggled with his fitness and health in the intervening months. As a result, there could be some nervousness about including him in a seam attack with two bowlers whose age combined adds to 76.

Robinson has, however, been working on his fitness and produced an encouraging performance – both in terms of his skills and his ability to maintain his pace – in the Lions match last week. As a consequence, he has won a recall to the squad and could return to the team in Manchester if it is felt fresh legs are required.

"Any team who has Ollie Robinson will benefit from it," Stokes told the BBC. "We have seen him operate at Test level. He's a quality bowler. He has gone away and done what we've asked of him, hence why he's been rewarded with a call back into the squad.

“He's definitely worked on his fitness. Being fit is part of bowling, but there are two types of fitness: physical fitness and bowling fitness. For Ollie, it's about maintaining the levels we want to see at Test level.

^{James Anderson will become the first England seamer to play a Test in his 40s since Les Jackson (Gareth Copley/Getty Images)}

"He has gone away and worked on that, and that was the big thing. I'm really pleased for him and he's been great to have back around. He's been really excited that he's back in the squad.

"But Pottsy, Jimmy and Broady: the shirt is theirs. It's great we have so many options to choose from. If one bowler pulls up unfit, we know we have quality to replace them. It's a very, very good place to be.

"It wasn't a tough selection decision. You look at the way that the seam bowlers have performed at the start of the summer in the Test matches and Pottsy before that for Durham. I see it as not only a challenge for the guys to try and find a way back into the team, but it's also a challenge for the guys who have the shirts to keep their place. That competition within your squad is something you want."

As well as reiterating his view that Foakes was "the best keeper in the world", Stokes referred to Anderson as "a freak" and "an unbelievable ambassador for the game… and for fast bowlers". Anderson will become the first specialist seamer picked to play Test cricket for England in their 40s since Les Jackson in 1961.

"That's phenomenal," Stokes said. "He's got the label 'the freak' to be able to do what he does at that age.

"I think he's an unbelievable ambassador for the game, but also an ambassador for fast bowlers in the future. They can look at someone at 40 to say he is still one of the best in the world to do it. The way he looks after himself, the constant will to always get better and not be happy with where he is at is an incredible thing and we're incredibly lucky to have him in our side.

"How long can he play? Well, he's still 20 in my eyes. So maybe until he's 60?"

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