WORCESTERSHIRE'S Moeen Ali has earned a recall to England's test squad, being named in the side to tour Sri Lanka in January. The all-rounder was named in the 16-strong touring squad, which also contains seven travelling reserves.

Moeen had decided to take a break from the test side following a tough 2019 which saw him dropped from the side.

This followed a run of poor form with the bat which saw him make just two half-centuries in his last 20 innings for England.

Since then he has expressed his desire to make a test comeback, with his spot confirmed alongside Dom Bess and Jack Leach as the spinners for the tour.

The touring party departs on January 2 and will play two behind closed doors tests at Galle on January 14-18 and January 22-26.

The squad in full: Joe Root (Yorkshire) (captain), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Jonathan Bairstow (Yorkshire), Dom Bess (Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), Jos Buttler (Lancashire), Zak Crawley (Kent), Sam Curran (Surrey), Ben Foakes (Surrey), Dan Lawrence (Essex), Jack Leach (Somerset), Dom Sibley (Warwickshire), Olly Stone (Warwickshire), Chris Woakes (Warwickshire), Mark Wood (Durham).

Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes have been rested for the tour and will return in February for the Test series against India.

The National Selectors will provide a block of rest for all multi-format players at various points over the winter period.

Surrey batsman Rory Burns misses the tour as his wife is expecting their first child during the second week of January.

Ollie Pope, who is recovering from a shoulder injury sustained in September during the Test series against Pakistan, will join the squad and continue his rehab in readiness for the four-match Test series against India starting in February.