ENGvsAUS: Who is Josh Tongue - England X-Factor for Lord's Test, who contemplated early retirement

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Captain Ben Stokes has included rookie seamer Josh Tongue in England's Playing 11 for the second Ashes Test against Australia at the Lord's. The Worcestershire paceman is the only change to the England line-up that lost the opening Test by two wickets at Edgbaston.

Tongue will be making his Ashes debut as a replacement for all-rounder Moeen Ali. Senior pacer Mark Wood is still not completely fit, making way for the young seamer's entry.

25-year-old Tongue, who made his debut against Ireland earlier this month and picked up a five-for on his international debut, replaces Moeen in a four-strong seam attack at Lord's.

Here's all you need to know about Josh Tongue

Tongue - who is tipped to be the X-factor for Ben Stokes & his band at Lord's - started cricket pretty early but even contemplated an early retirement from the game due to a persistent shoulder injury.

Earmarked for success from an early age, Tongue's accuracy and an extra yard of pace from a high action always attracted nods of appreciation and it seemed only a matter of time before England came calling.

He was just six years old when he began playing for Worcestershire, a partnership that is still unbroken. He turned up the club's Under-10 side well ahead of time. Tongue has since gone through the age groups and academy set-up at New Road. Eventually, he made his first-class debut in 2016 for the County side.

Josh Tongue List A and T20 stats

Primarily, Tongue has been looked at as a red-ball prospect. He has played 15 List A fixtures and only 10 T20s - three since returning from England Test duty.

Despite that thin track record, which includes a modest 24 limited-overs wickets, he was signed up by Manchester Originals for this summer's Hundred competition.

Career-threatening shoulder injury

The onset of a shoulder injury, two years ago, put his dreams of international cricket on hold in what became a 15-month battle. The injury rendered him unable to feel his entire right arm, much less grip the ball. The struggle left him wondering at his lowest ebb whether he was finished at the top level.

Given the severity of the problem, he even consulted the Professional Cricketers' Association about alternative career options. Regular bouts of numbness and pins and needles flummoxed a couple of shoulder specialists, with two operations unable to provide any relief, while a third might have involved the removal of a rib.

Tongue acknowledged last month he had a "very rare injury to have as a cricketer", but, just as all hope seemed lost, a third consultant detected an impingement in his arm artery after an ultrasound.

Instead of going for another surgery, he was prescribed an unorthodox suggestion of a Botox injection to the neck. The medication worked and helped Tongue to resume bowling within a couple of months.

Although, the jabs are not a cure, Tongue he has already had a second dose to get through the summer. But the initial hit alleviated his thoracic outlet syndrome to the extent he could return to action in August 2022.

Tongue shined for Young England Lions

Despite a handful of appearances last year, Tongue was drafted into the England Lions squad to face Sri Lanka and he seized his chance in Galle, collecting an eight-wicket match haul. He even picked up a fifer in the first innings and conceded 76 runs in the unofficial Test on a pitch which is infamous for being a seamer's graveyard.

Tongue saw his stock skyrocket after he dismissed the international stars Steve Smith and Cheteshwar Pujara in an LV= Insurance County Championship Division Two match against Sussex last month.

(With inputs from Stats Perform)