England fast bowler Gus Atkinson will miss the final of The Hundred to ensure he is fresh for next week’s first Test against Sri Lanka.
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) decided to make the 26-year-old unavailable for Oval Invincibles, who won the group stage of the men’s tournament to qualify for Sunday’s showpiece match at Lord’s.
Atkinson was named player of the series in England’s recent 3-0 Test series win over West Indies with 22 wickets at 16.22 – including 7-45 on his debut in the first Test.
Earlier this week England captain Ben Stokes was ruled out for the remainder of the summer after tearing his hamstring playing in The Hundred for Northern Superchargers.
With England set to name a four-man bowling attack against Sri Lanka, the ECB elected not to take any risks with Atkinson in the lead-up to the match.
Atkinson bowled 88.5 overs in the series against West Indies – 10 more than Chris Woakes and over 30 more than Mark Wood, the next England bowler on the list.
Woakes, Wood, Matthew Potts and Olly Stone are the other fast bowlers in England’s squad to face Sri Lanka, with spinner Shoaib Bashir also selected.