Finn favourite to replace Anderson

	James Anderson was impressive in the first Test before being injured

England will name their replacement for James Anderson at 9am on Tuesday morning, after it was confirmed that the fast bowler will miss Friday's Lord's Test against Sri Lanka after sustaining a grade one side strain during the second day's play of the series opener in Cardiff.

Aside from a brief appearance as nightwatchman, Anderson did not feature in the latter stages of the match. However, his absence was not felt by his team-mates as they surged to an incredible innings-and-14-run victory after bowling Sri Lanka out for 82 in just 24.4 overs on the final afternoon of the match.

Nevertheless, England will miss his new-ball abilities at Lord's, a venue where he has claimed 36 wickets in nine appearances, including two of his ten five-wicket hauls. "It's a very slight side strain, but you have to take these things on a case-by-case basis," said England's captain, Andrew Strauss. "Hopefully he'll be around for the third Test, but we can't guarantee it."

In Anderson's absence, the likeliest replacement isSteven Finn, who was named in their 12-man squad for Cardiff but was omitted on the morning of the match. As a Middlesex man, he is familiar with the Lord's wicket, and should he be chosen alongside Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett, England's three-man pace attack would rank among the tallest of all time.

However, Strauss indicated that, for variety's sake, the Lord's squad would include the option of a shorter pace man - probably Ajmal Shahzad, although the fit-again Graham Onions is also a candidate for selection at a venue where he claimed four wickets in seven balls on debut against West Indies in 2009. "We certainly want the option of a skiddier bowler, but whether he makes the final XI is another matter," said Strauss.

Anderson was the pick of England's pace attack on the second day of the match and produced a superb spell of swing bowling during the morning session to remove Mahela Jayawardene, but spent time off the field during the afternoon and was only able to bowl one over after tea before heading back to the dressing room.

"It's a huge concern for us," said his new-ball partner Stuart Broad, who was himself ruled out of the latter stages of the Ashes after sustaining a side injury during the Adelaide Test in December. "He felt a bit of tightness in the back and side, and I know what side injuries are all about after this winter. If you do get a little bit of pain it's not great, so we're being pretty cautious."