FORMER Somerset batsman Nick Compton has been recalled to the England Test squad for the upcoming tour of South Africa. 

England have dropped veteran batsman Ian Bell, with both Compton and Gary Ballance earning recalls.

Compton, 32, will provide competition to Hales as captain Alastair Cook's prospective opening partner as England look to solve a long-standing issue at the top of the order.

The Middlesex batsman scored two centuries in nine Tests before being dropped in 2013 while Yorkshire's Ballance, who averages 47 from his 15 Test appearances with four hundreds, has not featured since this summer's Ashes.

National selector James Whitaker said: "Ian Bell has been an outstanding player for many years and undoubtedly still has plenty to offer England in the future.

"It was clearly a difficult decision but he has struggled for runs in recent series and we felt that it was the right time for him to take a break and spend time working on his game out of the spotlight."

"The inclusion of Nick Compton and Gary Ballance alongside Alex Hales, Joe Root and James Taylor gives Trevor Bayliss and Alastair Cook plenty of options in the top order."

Adil Rashid is also missing from the 16-man squad with England deciding the conditions in South Africa mean the chances of playing two spinners are 'extremely remote'.

Moeen Ali and Samit Patel will be England's frontline spinners for the four-Test series, with Rashid now set to travel to Australia to play for a Big Bash franchise, Bell's omission comes in the wake of a series of below-par performances from the 33-year-old, who has scored just one Test century since July 2014.

England arrive in South Africa on December 11 and play two three-day warm-up matches before the first Test begins in Durban on Boxing Day.

The second Test takes place in Cape Town from January 2, with the final two matches being held in Johannesburg (January 14-18) and Centurion (January 22-26).

Whitaker added: "Playing the number one ranked Test side in the world in their home conditions will be a really exciting challenge for this squad and one I'm sure these players will relish."