England's Bairstow poised for Test recall after BBL withdrawal

England's Jonny Bairstow has withdrawn from the Melbourne Stars' upcoming Big Bash League campaign after he was recalled for international duty, the Australian Twenty20 franchise said on Thursday.

The 10th edition of the Twenty20 event begins on Dec. 10 and the 31-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman was set to make his tournament debut after Christmas.

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However, Bairstow is now expected to be called up to England's Test squad for the tour of Sri Lanka in January.

“We're naturally disappointed Jonny won't be able to link up with us this season but we wish him well on his recall and England's winter tours,” Stars coach David Hussey said.

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England has yet to confirm its Test squad for the Sri Lanka series. Bairstow, who is currently part of the limited-overs squad in South Africa, has not played a Test this year after a difficult 2019 but scored a century in England's last Test in Sri Lanka two years ago.