Rookie batsmen have final chance to secure Ashes spot in third Test against the West Indies
Ashes hopefuls given one more chance
Tom Westley has kept his place in an unchanged 13-man England squad for next week's decisive third Test against West Indies at Lord's.
The Essex batsman has come under scrutiny after posting scores of 8, 3 and 8 in the first two Tests after he'd posted 59 on debut against South Africa a month ago.
But he has been given another chance to nail down a place in the team in what will be England's last Test before the year-ending Ashes series in Australia.
Fellow Test rookies Mark Stoneman and Dawid Malan have also held onto their places after both chipped in with second-innings half-centuries in the five-wicket loss to West Indies at Headingley.
While the positions of skipper Joe Root and his predecessor Alastair Cook are set in stone for the Ashes, and England boasts a powerful middle and lower order, the identity of their second opener, No.3 and No.5 for the first Test in Brisbane remains a mystery.
"Certainly, Mark looks like a tough type of player to me," coach Trevor Bayliss said.
"He looks like he's ready for a scrap the whole time but, when the bad ball comes along, he is able to put it away.
"They (Stoneman and Malan) have started to look comfortable and they can both play off the back foot so the signs are looking good.
"But, as you know, we’ve said that before and we’ve had a change after a few more matches.
"I still have fingers crossed for them."
Left out of the starting team in Leeds, Middlesex seamer Toby Roland-Jones and Hampshire leg-spinner Mason Crane will both hope to force their way into the XI for the series decider.
Coach Bayliss said he was confident his "hurting" side will bounce back from their shock defeat at Headingley.
The West Indies chased down a target of 322 on Tuesday's fifth day to win by five wickets as youngster Shai Hope added his second Test century to his brilliant 147 in the first innings.
England captain Joe Root appeared to have made a well-judged declaration when, on his Yorkshire home ground, he closed the hosts' second innings on 8-490 late on Monday.
Bayliss backed his skipper's move by saying: "I hope the result doesn't change the way (Root) thinks about the game. In that situation, more times than not, we'll win more than we lose."
"They were hurting and to me that's a good thing. If the team is hurting after a loss, it means something to them.
"I'm sure they will be fully focused and ready to put things right in the next Test."
England squad: Joe Root (c), Alastair Cook, Mark Stoneman, Tom Westley, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Toby Roland-Jones, Mason Crane
2017-18 International Fixtures:
Magellan Ashes Series
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