The recently concluded Lord’s Test between India and England was a high-octane thriller. England edged past India by 22 runs to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.

The action now shifts to Old Trafford, Manchester, where the fourth Test is scheduled to begin on July 23. Ahead of the match, England has announced their squad, and a major headline is the return of Liam Dawson after nearly eight years.

Who is Liam Dawson?

Shoaib Bashir, who sealed England’s win at Lord’s by taking Mohammed Siraj’s wicket, has been ruled out of the remainder of IND vs ENG Test series due to injury.

In his place, England has drafted in left-arm spinner Liam Dawson for the crucial fourth Test. Dawson is making his comeback into the Test squad after a long gap of eight years.

Liam Dawson made his Test debut back in 2016, and interestingly, it was against India in Chennai.

His last Test appearance came in July 2017. Since then, he has been out of the national red-ball setup. Now, as he returns to the England squad, all eyes will be on whether he gets a place in the final playing XI and what impact he can make.

Liam Dawson’s International Record

Liam Dawson hasn’t played many Tests for England. So far, he has featured in just 3 Test matches, claiming 7 wickets. In ODIs, he has taken 5 wickets from 6 matches. In the shortest format (T20Is), he has played 14 T20Is and taken 11 wickets with his left-arm spin.

Ben Stokes (captain), Joe Root, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Zak Crawley, Liam Dawson, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes.

With the series delicately poised, Liam Dawson's return could add an interesting spin dynamic to the contest at Manchester.