England red-ball captain Ben Stokes is confident that “phenomenal” Chris Woakes can fill the gap that was left open after James Anderson retired from Test cricket after playing the first Test against West Indies at Lord’s.
Anderson, 41, called time on his red-ball career after bagging 704 wickets, the most by any pacer in Test cricket and the third most in the history of the format.
Stuart Broad already retired from Test cricket during Ashes 2023 and England will now be taking the field without two of the greatest pacers in their history who combined for 1,308 wickets in the format.
The second Test against West Indies, which is to begin at Trent Bridge on July 18, will be the first time since 2012 that England will be playing a Test at home without one of Anderson or Broad.
England’s bowling attack is now expected to be led by Woakes, who will be playing his 50th Test match tomorrow.
"I see it as an opportunity for someone like Woakesy to take on more of a leadership role in the bowling unit," Stokes told a pre-match press conference on Wednesday.
"We've been so used to Jimmy and Broady doing that, so it's a great opportunity for him. He's a very experienced player and a phenomenal performer, particularly in England.
"It's great for him to be able to lead the attack and 50 caps is a huge honour."
Stokes will also be counting on Gus Atkinson, who bagged 12 wickets on his Test debut, and Mark Wood — one of the quickest bowlers in the world.
"It's very exciting, the prospect of seeing Gus Atkinson bowl at one end and Mark Wood at the other," said Stokes.
"Look at the way Gus bowled last week, it's not only the 12 wickets, it's finding another bowler who can bowl between 87-90mph.
"Woody is someone who had an unbelievable summer last year in the Ashes," added Stokes, with his Durham team-mate taking 14 wickets in three matches as England fought back to draw the five-Test series 2-2.
"He was a massive player for us with a huge impact and everyone knows why -- because of his pace."
England XI for second Test:
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (capt) Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Mark Wood, Shoaib Bashir.
