LONDON: Middlesex right-arm seamer Toby Roland-Jones will make his England test debut against South Africa at The Oval on Thursday after Mark Wood was ruled out with a heel injury.

The 29-year-old has one limited overs cap for England, and captain Joe Root said Roland-Jones would be keen to take his chance in the third game of the four-match series, which is level at 1-1.

"Toby has looked good in the lead-up to the first two matches in practice and he's had a good couple of years," said Root. "He'll be desperate to show what he can do with the red ball."

After a convincing win in his first test as England skipper, Root's captaincy came in for criticism after England were thrashed by 340 runs in the second test at Trent Bridge, and he said the team were eager to make amends.

"The most important thing is that we learn from the experience and make sure we improve," Root said. "It's a settled dressing room that is desperate to get better and know that we are a better side than we performed last week.

"We have to bounce back strongly and it's important we put in a strong performance."

The match will be the 100th test at the Oval -- making it the fourth ground to reach that milestone after Lord's, Melbourne and Sydney.