Potts has taken 31 wickets at 29:22 since making his debut in the summer of 2022, appearing in the first five matches of Ben Stokes’ tenure as captain. The first three matches were against New Zealand and Potts excelled with 14 wickets.
But after being left out of the returning Ollie Robinson for the second Test of that summer’s South Africa series, the Durham quick found his opportunities limited.
The 26-year-old has played just one Test in 2023 (Lord’s against Ireland) and played the first two Tests against Sri Lanka this summer before England decided to look at Leicestershire’s left-back for the third. excluded from testing. Arm seamer Josh Hull. Although his lone appearance on the tour of Pakistan came in the second Test at Multan on a surface aimed at the home spinners, Potts managed respectable match figures of 3 for 85 from 31.2 overs.
With England leading 2-0 and the series heading to Hamilton, Stokes decided to give Potts an outing in the team’s 17th and final Test of 2024. He is likely to take the new ball while Woakes is away.
“It’s another opportunity to see one of our fast bowlers who will play a big role going forward,” Stokes said of Potts’ selection. “When you win 20 games, it puts you in an easier position to make changes.
“Pottsy’s got a huge engine in him. He can go all day long, bowl a lot of overs, but not only that, he’s a very skilful bowler. He’s working on a few things here with Jimmy (Anderson) and getting more He’s another versatile bowler, so we can use him in the short-ball scheme we use and he can get back up and bowl 20 more balls to you.”
Stokes also praised Woakes’ output on this tour. The 35-year-old was the leader of the attack off the Kookaburra ball, taking six wickets at 29.16. This included Kane Williamson twice.
The average number of overseas visitors welcoming winter was 51, a slight decrease to 48.93. And while there is uncertainty as to whether Woakes will travel to Australia next winter for the 2025-26 Ashes, Stokes believes the Warwickshire veteran has shown his quality.
“Chris Woakes came into the winter tour under a bit of scrutiny over his away record, but I think what he did over the winter proved a lot of people wrong,” Stokes said. “He was fantastic. He was great in Pakistan and quite influential here as well.”
