England have called up Jos Buttler as cover for wicket-keeper Matt Prior ahead of the first Test against India which begins on Wednesday.
England are 2.00 to win the five-match Test series, India can be backed at 2.60 and a drawn series is 5.00.
Prior has reported some tightness in his right thigh and as such England have called up Lancashire’s Buttler who is uncapped at Test level.
However, the 23-year-old has been involved in one-day international and Twenty20 matches for England.
Buttler has managed 33 ODI appearances and hit a sublime 121 from just 74 balls in a defeat to Sri Lanka in May – the fastest one-day international century by an England player.
The Lancashire keeper has also played 36 Twenty20 matches for England, amassing 506 runs at an average of 22 to date.
Prior wore strapping on his right thigh during fielding drills at Trent Bridge on Tuesday and appeared able to be able to crouch in the wicket-keeper’s stance without any visible discomfort.
Buttler was also involved in the drills but it seems that Prior, if fit, will start against India.
Prior was dropped for the final two Tests of England’s 5-0 series defeat in Australia over the winter but the 32-year-old returned to the side for the recent home series against Sri Lanka, as captain Alastair Cook stated Buttler was not “quite ready” to compete at Test level at the time following calls for him to replace Prior.
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