ENGLAND TEST TRACKER: Who will Ed Smith choose and whose stock is dropping ahead of Pakistan?

The Cricketer’s England Test Tracker keeps an eye on those likely to feature, and those coming up on the rails for a place in the national team

^{Amar Virdi of Surrey}

On Tuesday, Ed Smith will name his first squad in his role as England national selector.

The Cricketer’s Test Tracker keeps an eye on those likely to feature, and those coming up on the rails for a place in the national team.

Disclaimer: It is possible that this column might, on occasion, get things wrong.

1 (1) - Joe Root: Even two cheap dismissals at The Oval won’t shift the captain of the national team. Because, let’s face it, he’s not going to drop himself.

2 (2) - Jimmy Anderson: No longer Atomic Blonde. Still England’s No. 1 quick.

3 (3) - Ben Stokes: Insta-pick. Next.

4 (4) - Jonny Bairstow: A few starts for the Yorkies in the Championship without going on to make a big’un. There’ll be some competition for the gloves from Ben Foakes but Bairstow’s improvement behind the stumps over the past year should mean he keeps hold of them.

^{Dawid Malan has been making runs for Middlesex}

5 (5) - Alastair Cook: Chef will get the opportunity to become the top Test runscorer at Lord’s, without a shadow of a doubt.

6 (6) - Stuart Broad: So certain of his place he had the time to study the Fantasy Football form table and ended up as the best player in the entire world.

7 (7) - Dawid Malan: In the runs for Middlesex and that will be of huge relief to the selectors, who have enough to think about elsewhere.

8 (9) - Jake Ball: Bowling’s answer to James Vince when it comes to England selection. Twenty-seven Championship wickets at 18.33 this season versus three Test scalps at 114.33. Go figure.

9 (12) - Ben Foakes: Consistent, classy and patient. If England are going to make the No. 7 spot something of a floating voter - sometimes a batsman, sometimes an allrounder - then this man deserves to be the first incumbent.

10 (14) - Moeen Ali: Rises up the Tracker thanks only to the hugely unfortunate injury suffered by Jack Leach in the nets at Taunton. One match in the IPL doth not a Test-match preparation make.

11 (22) - Nick Gubbins: 116, 109, 8, 107, 99… here lies the form of a player in truly excellent touch. Forget the fact he’s not batting in Division One - that’s not his fault and he’s cut it at the top of the county game already anyway - with Mark Stoneman struggling, the Middlesex man comes into proper contention.

12 (8) - Chris Woakes: Whether or not he has any red-ball form going into the series, Woakes is still the allrounder with a Test bowling average of 24.28 at home compared to 61.77 away. And this is why the Tracker’s highly scientific calculations has him holding onto the coattails of the team.

^{Virdi could make a play to be England's spinner}

13 (16) - James Vince: The Hampshire man’s timing is a thing of wonder when all is going well, so no wonder he pulled a brilliant double hundred out of the bag at Somerset the day before the England selection meeting. However, he will feel the breath of other in-form batsman coveting his spot in the team.

14 (11) - Mark Stoneman: A rocky start for the man they call Rocky. A top score of 29 has left him with an average of 16.43, lower than the likes of Peter Siddle, Stuart Broad and Jake Ball this season. It will improve but right now he looks vulnerable.

15 (15) - Amar Virdi: Too soon! Too soon! Yeah, well, tell that to the man who’s dismissed many of the finest batsmen operating in Division One on April and May wickets. Seventeen scalps at 19.65 is one heck of a mark to make as a 19-year-old offspinner. Still, too soon.

16 (18) - Mark Wood: Returning from the IPL early, whether or not he was pushed, was an excellent decision. Wickets against Derbyshire will have done his cause no harm at all.

17 (17) - Rory Burns: That magnificent 193 aside, is there enough to say now is the right time for the Surrey captain at the top of the England order?

18 (24) - Joe Clarke: In a Worcestershire team that is finding life in Division One tough, this confident strokeplayer is continuing to make a major impression. He’s only 20 years old but is now into double figures when it comes to first-class centuries. Age is but a number.

^{Mark Wood has returned to the County Championship}

19 (21) - Keaton Jennings: Making runs for Lancashire after a slowish start to the campaign. If England are concerned about elevating Dawid Malan to three, with Joe Root comfortable at No.4, Jennings at first drop could be an option.

20 (13) - Jamie Porter: After a demolition job of Lancashire it’s all gone a bit quiet.

21 (22) - Craig Overton: England will keep an eye on the big man regardless of his domestic form. Maybe because he’s just that tall.

22 (-) - Olly Stone: If he can stay fit for even a short period of time, the Warwickshire quick will be charging into the national discussion.

23 (-) - Ollie Pope: Test Tracker is playing silly buggers, placing a youngster with 16 first-class innings to his name. But Test Tracker has a habit of glitching when it sees one-knee cover drives that you want to take home to meet your grandma.

24 (-) - James Hildreth: Of course it’ll never happen. But won’t you just let us dream.

25 (19) - Ben Coad: A leg injury meant he didn’t feature against Surrey, and the Tracker has reacted accordingly.

Liam Dawson has fallen out of the Test Tracker due to injury. Sam Northeast is excluded while he recovers from a broken digit. Jamie Overton is also injured. Jack Leach has dropped out after breaking his thumb.