Gary Ballance has been dropped for the third Investec Test against Australia with Jonny Bairstow earning a recall in his place. Ian Bell, who is also under pressure after a lean run, will move up to No. 3 at Edgbaston with Joe Root batting at four followed by Bairstow.
The remainder of the squad is unchanged with Adil Rashid and Steven Finn retaining their spots in the 13-man party as England aim to respond to their 405-run mauling at Lord's.
Although Ballance made an important 61 in the first innings in Cardiff, forming a stand of 163 with Root which turned England's innings around from 43 for 3, he has had his technique picked apart by Australia's pace bowlers as had been the case in the previous series against New Zealand.
Only once in his last 10 Test innings has he reached 30 and, on five of those occasions, he had been bowled.
"Gary was naturally disappointed to miss out on this occasion, however we feel that he will benefit from some time in county cricket to rediscover his form," James Whitaker, the national selector, said. "He has already had plenty of success at international level and, as selectors, we are confident Gary will play a significant role for England in the future."
England squad for third Test
Alastair Cook (capt), Adam Lyth, Ian Bell, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (wk), Moeen Ali, Stuart Broad, Mark Wood, James Anderson, Adil Rashid, Steven Finn
Bairstow, who played the last of his 14 Tests against Australia, in Sydney, has been in stellar form this season. His hundred against Worcestershire in the current round of Championship matches was his fifth of the season and overall he has made 906 runs in the Championship at 100.66. He also made a successful return to the England side for the deciding ODI against New Zealand, at Chester-le-Street, where he scored an unbeaten 83 off 60 balls to secure victory.
Ballance was not the only member of England's top order short of runs - they have been three down for 52 runs or fewer in nine of their last 14 innings. Adam Lyth, the opening batsman who made his debut against New Zealand, has failed three times in four innings in the Ashes - regularly giving catches to keeper and slip cordon - while Bell endured a poor outing at Lord's, making 1 and 11 to continue a run where he has passed 30 only once in his last 12 innings.
Both, though, have survived to take their spots in the third Test with Bell moving up to fill Ballance's spot at No. 3 where he has previously batted in 22 Tests - the last of which was against Australia in Sydney - with an average of 39.27.
"The break ahead of the third Test will give the squad time to reflect on the series so far and a chance to focus on playing the positive, confident cricket we saw in Cardiff," Whitaker said. "For the third Test Ian Bell will move up the order to bat at three followed by Joe Root with Jonny Bairstow coming in at five. Jonny has worked extremely hard at his game and his record for Yorkshire speaks for itself. He fully deserves this opportunity."
