Alun Wyn Jones - Wales captain

Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones to reach historic landmark in England clash

Alun Wyn Jones will become the most capped player in Welsh rugby history on Sunday when he leads the team out against England.

The lock has been named to play in his 135th , having played in 125 for his country and 9 for the British & Irish .

Already the record-holder for most appearances made for the (238), Jones will start in the second row with Adam Beard is a strong team to face rivals England.

The Grand Slam winners have named and unchanged backline from when they beat Ireland in March for the match at .

In the absence of Taulupe Faletau to the back row after his dream was dashed by a broken collarbone suffered in training, flanker Aaron Wainwright will start alongside Justin Tipuric and Ross Moriarty.

Wainwright and replacement scrum-half Tomos Williams are the only players in Wales’ match-day 23 who remain in single digits for the number of caps they have won.

By contrast, England head coach Eddie Jones has named eight players, four of whom are uncapped.

Wales boast 857 caps to England’s 574 across the two squads.

“The squad are looking forward to this weekend and getting a game under their belt after a really intense preparation period,” said Wales head coach Warren Gatland.

“We have picked a strong-looking team and we are looking forward to seeing how they kick on after a successful couple of campaigns.

“These matches are really important leading into the RWC, to ensure that the players are both ready for the tournament but also to give players the opportunity to put their hands up for selection.

“There is a balance with selection, a need to mix continuity from what we have achieved with opportunity, and we will look to do that over the next couple of weeks.

“Looking at the first two matches, this block replicates what we are doing in the RWC with a six-day turnaround so it’s a good opportunity for us to prepare and mimic that schedule.”

Wales team to play England at Twickenham on Sunday:

Wales: 15 Liam Williams, 14 George North, 13 Jonathan Davies, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Gareth Anscombe, 9 Gareth Davies; 1 Nicky Smith, 2 Ken Owens, 3 Tomas Francis, 4 Adam Beard, 5 Alun Wyn Jones (c), 6 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Justin Tipuric, 8 Ross Moriarty

Replacements: 16 Elliot Dee, 17 Wyn Jones, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Jake Ball, 20 Aaron Shingler, 21 Tomos Williams, 22 , 23 Owen Watkin

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