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England poised to rest both James Anderson and Stuart Broad for Sri Lanka tour

England are poised to tour Sri Lanka in the spring without one of either Stuart Broad or Jimmy Anderson for the first time since 2006 - Getty Images Europe
England are poised to tour Sri Lanka in the spring without one of either Stuart Broad or Jimmy Anderson for the first time since 2006 - Getty Images Europe

England could go on tour next month without one of either Stuart Broad or James Anderson for the first time in 14 years when they name the squad for the Sri Lanka Test series.

The selectors will hold a number of discussions with players after the series against South Africa and are tempted to leave out both of their veteran seamers because the series will be played on pitches unsuited to their bowling.

Anderson took only one wicket in Sri Lanka in 2018 and was left out for the third Test while Broad has played every Test this winter and is ready for a rest. He appeared in one Test on the last tour to Sri Lanka, replacing Anderson in Colombo.

Anderson is recovering from a broken rib and resting him to ensure he is fit for a home series against West Indies in June makes sense.

Instead England will pick an extra spinner and could leave the few overs of seam to Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer or Mark Wood, depending on their fitness. One of either Broad or Anderson has been on every England tour since March 2006 .

Dominic Bess has worked his way into the squad for Sri Lanka after his performance in Port Elizabeth but the selectors will sit down and talk to Moeen Ali when he arrives in South Africa at the weekend to see if he is ready to play Test cricket again.

Moeen Ali of England bowls during a nets session at P Sara Oval on October 3, 2018 in Colombo - Credit: Gareth Copley/Getty Images
England still regard Moeen Ali as their best spinner and hope to persuade him to return to red-ball cricket for the tour to Sri Lanka Credit: Gareth Copley/Getty Images

Moeen said last week he was still undecided over whether to make himself available for the tour to Sri Lanka after losing his appetite for Test cricket. But he remains England’s best spin bowler and the management will pick him if he ends his self-imposed Test exile.

“I’m very keen to have that chat with him, yes. Moeen’s a great lad and I do enjoy having him around,” said Chris Silverwood, the England coach who will meet with Moeen when the one-day squad arrives at the weekend.

“I get on very well with Mo so at some point we’ll be [sitting] down to have a chat. My door’s always open to him, he knows that. First and foremost we want what’s best for Mo but to have him around is a great asset.”

Quinton de Kock has replaced Faf du Plessis as captain of South Africa’s 50-over side for the series against England. Du Plessis was widely expected to stand down after the World Cup in England last year and at 35 is not going to play in the next tournament. He was also left out of the squad for the three match series with England.

Du Plessis is expected to remain in charge of the Twenty20 side against England.