Which bowlers should England pick for the third Test? The Cricketer writers make their selections

England are spoiled for choice ahead of the clash at Emirates Old Trafford, with the Wisden Trophy on the line. Here, our writers - including SIMON HUGHES, HUW TURBERVILL and JAMES COYNE - pick their preferred attacks...

England v West Indies: 2nd Test player ratings

SIMON HUGHES

Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer, Jack Leach

Broad looked superb once he got his legs up with that around-the-wicket spell in the first innings. You want tall or hit the deck bowlers for Old Trafford so he is top of my list.

Woakes was excellent in the second Test and again fits the bill with his high action and back-of-a-length style. He has really improved his wobble-seam nip backer to go with his natural outswinger

West Indies have looked shaky when the ball is up around chest height and Archer gets that bounce naturally. Having him able to bowl a penetrating mid-innings spell with an older ball will take a bit off the pressure off Ben Stokes in that role.

There is one left-hander in the West Indies team (none if John Campbell gets dropped) so England need Leach to spin the ball away from the right-handers. Also Dom Bess needs Sam Curran’s rough. If no Curran then no Bess.   

HUW TURBERVILL

Stuart Broad, Jofra Archer, James Anderson, Jack Leach, Ben Stokes

Broad took a while to prove his point in the second Test. He had bowled 19 overs before he took his first wicket (Shamarh Brooks) but once his rhythm was activated he was away.

Archer showed on the last day at Southampton that he can make things happen, and presumably has a point to prove after his bio-security breach.

Anderson – tough one this, pipping Chris Woakes – has the discipline and nous to expose a batting line-up that understandably has one eye on the Heathrow departure lounge after this weirdest, most valiant of tours. Also harsh on England’s talisman, Sam Curran (eight home Test wins from eight).

As long as Leach is bowling well in the nets it is time to give West Indies’ predominately right-handed batting line-up something new to think about. Hopefully we will see more of the characterful Dom Bess at some stage.

If Stokes plays as a specialist batsman, Curran narrowly pips Woakes for me.

JAMES COYNE

Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer, Dom Bess, Ben Stokes

You can’t rest Broad now, especially since he has now has miles in the legs – which truly were pumping at Old Trafford – after missing Southampton. Bowling fuller than he used to, too.

Right now I’d go for Woakes as he seems to be getting into his stride, but I’d be prepared to leave it as late as possible before Friday to monitor Anderson’s fitness and zip. Whoever is picked for the third Test here may well not play the first against Pakistan.

Archer certainly has a point to prove after his biosecurity breach, and I think it’s more important to wrap Mark Wood up in cotton wool to unleash him in the Pakistan series. I don’t think I’d be playing them in the same XI unless we’re in Australia, but I do think it’s important to have at least one express quick in the side, especially if the next Old Trafford wicket is drier than this one was.

As long as Stokes is fit you’d be mad to leave him out with a series on the line, as he’s at the apex of his career and swings matches in all disciplines. If he isn’t fit to bowl, then he bats No.4 and you have to drop Zak Crawley to make way for an extra bowler in Sam Curran.

I know it’s not ideal to have an off-spinner bowling to so many right-handers, but – fine operator that Jack Leach is – it does seem a bit of a gamble to bring in a spinner who hasn’t played a competitive match since last November, especially when the Wisden Trophy is at stake.

All in all, this is the devil’s own job over a pair of short, intense, three-Test series where the selectors are caught between trying to keep their players fit over an intense schedule and winning matches, all with the backdrop of no domestic cricket in the background for the fringe players.

SAM MORSHEAD

Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Chris Woakes, Dom Bess, Ben Stokes (only in an emergency)

Tempting though it is to bring Jofra Archer straight back into this side, the idea of leaving out any of Stuart Broad, James Anderson or Chris Woakes in overcast Manchester weather with a Test series on the line seems far too ridiculous to consider. 

Woakes is England's best bowler in typically English conditions, Anderson is the most prolific seamer of all-time and Broad has got his groove back. Yes, there's no express pace but the pitches in this series have been as lively as a university library on a Sunday morning. This three makes the most sense for a team wanting to win this series, and it fits into an rotation policy that might or might not be operating in the background.

As for Bess, if you've chosen an offspinner against 10 right-handers for two matches straight, you can't suddenly change your mind in the third. He's not done enough wrong to be dropped.

If I'm Joe Root, I'm trying as hard as I can not to give Ben Stokes the ball over these five days; he's done so much already, with another three-match series following straight on. But the premise and the practice are two different things entirely.

NICK FRIEND

Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer, Dom Bess, Ben Stokes

When England do announce their side for the final Test, it will be worth bearing in mind the wider circumstances. There is another series beginning soon afterwards and a need to keep seamers fit. So, don’t read my attack as the line-up I’d necessarily pick in a typical summer, were this standalone game the be-all-and-end-all, but rather a measured response to this unusual context.

After a couple of U-turns, I’ve plumped for Jofra Archer over James Anderson. For me, this was the most difficult decision – not because of their abilities, but because England have a balance to strike going into the second half of their summer.

Had Archer not broken protocols ahead of the second Test, he would almost certainly be sitting this one out, having then played in the first two. Anderson told Sky Sports last week that he was hopeful of playing in four out of six summer Tests – were he to miss out in this third match, he would then have to feature in all three Pakistan games. And while that thought is not ideal, this line-up brings a balance to the overall enlarged squad.

For all the noise around Stuart Broad, who should never have been left out initially, Chris Woakes was magnificent in England’s win. He takes his wickets at a lower average than both Broad and Anderson in England; he is – on home soil – almost the perfect cricketer.

Going in without a spinner is an option, but I’d be keeping faith with Dom Bess, not least because he is a 22-year-old learning his trade. Some of the talk around him has been mindless and a reminder of how quickly past achievement gets forgotten – it was only a few months ago that he took a five-wicket haul in South Africa.

If Bess is England’s first-choice spinner, then pick him and let him learn from his mistakes. That’s how cricketers grow. His length was inconsistent at Emirates Old Trafford, but he showed when he landed his best ball how much of a threat he could be, especially given the amount of turn and bounce on offer.

THOMAS BLOW

James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Chris Woakes, Jack Leach

If we are assuming all the bowlers are fit, then Wood and Archer should not even be in the equation.

Neither of them played that badly in Southampton, but Broad and Woakes cannot be dropped after their respective performances in the last Test.

There is a temptation to pick Curran again as he just seems to make things happen, but Anderson is irresistible. I would always pick a spinner and I do not think Bess has done enough to secure his place. Leach deserves a chance and he has 10 right-handers to bowl at.

CHRIS SMITH

Jofra Archer, Stuart Broad, James Anderon, Dom Bess, Ben Stokes

Jofra Archer is England’s most cherished talent of a generation and with the added benefit of missing the second Test, he should be fresh for the series decider. Workload permitting, he has to be first bowler on the team sheet.

With the England selectors playing the role of the Brisbane Courier Mail at the first Test, Broad is fired up, and he bowled nicely in the second Test. He offers control, skill and you can rely on him to bowl 20 overs per day if needed.

With Archer and Stokes, England don’t need a third ‘enforcer’ in Mark Wood, while it does feel a shame for him to miss out while he is fit. Anderson, like Archer, should be fresh and will relish a chance to bowl on his home ground.

Any stick levelled at Bess feels harsh. He has bowled with good control and has taken useful wickets. His runs can be precious too if England find themselves in an all-too-familiar batting hole. Advice telling him to go round the wicket should be listened to.

As for Stokes: you try keeping the ball off him.