Moeen Ali is set to earn him a recall to the England side for the second Test against India later this week after his latest devastating batting performance in The Hundred.
He's one of several potential changes to the side ahead of Thursday's outing at Lord's, with head coach Chris Silverwood also considering handing Haseeb Hameed a first Test cap in five years.
The England boss's mooted shake-up comes after a poor batting performance in the first Test at Trent Bridge, where England were only saved by an inspired performance from Joe Root and Sunday rain which forced a draw.
ESPN reports all-rounder Ali has been recalled and is "set to play" against India, in the wake of his superb batting performance for Birmingham Phoenix on Monday.
He scored 59 runs off just 28 balls to push his team towards a comfortable 93-run win over Welsh Fire, with his work at the crease complimented by Imran Tahir's bowling hat-trick.
If he plays, it will be Ali's first home Test since the 2019 Ashes. He has a record of 189 wickets in his 61 games in the longest format.
After the win for Phoenix, Ali said: "If I get the call, I'll be available."
Meanwhile The Guardian believes he could be joined in the squad by Hameed, who would have the job of helping to arrest the declining form of the England batting order.
While Root continues to score well, those around him are struggling and Zak Crawley looks particularly vulnerable due to his average in 2021 of just 11, managing only 156 runs across 14 innings.
In comparison, his strong 2020 yielded 580 runs in 11 innings for England, an average of 53.
Hameed's century against India for a County Select XI in Durham in July caught the eye, and the 24-year-old looks as ready as he has been since his drop in form after making his initial international bow five years ago.
Silverwood said Hameed is "making a very strong case" for inclusion, adding: "I'm confident he's as ready as he could be."
"He did put his best foot forward in Durham when he scored that hundred. What he did early season in the Championship shows there’s a lot of class there. He’s done everything he possibly can to be ready and taken every opportunity."
The coach has also made it clear he will be forced to make changes unless England's top order starts to rediscover its run-scoring form.
He said: " We have to address and accept we are not getting those runs, so we have to look at the why.
"The question has been posed to the batting coaches as well – how do we make sure we give them the best opportunity to be successful?
" But ultimately if it isn’t working, I have to take a view on why and how do I change that. Ideally, we get the guys scoring runs again, get the confidence back in them. But if that doesn’t happen, obviously I have to have a look."
