India Predicted XI For 5th Test: The Indian batsmen put on an epic rearguard performance in the IND vs ENG 4th Test at Old Trafford to escape Manchester with a draw, thus keeping their chances of levelling the series alive heading into the 5th Test.
England looked in prime position to take a 3-1 lead in Manchester when they had India 0/2 in India’s first over of the second innings, while trailing by 311 runs. However, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill, Washington Sundar, and Ravindra Jadeja managed to keep England at bay for five sessions to secure a draw.
Now, the action moves to London, where the 5th Test will be played at The Oval from Thursday, July 31. India are in a must-win situation as they will look to draw the series and share the Anderson-Tendulkar trophy.
The playing XI will see some changes for the fifth Test. The one that is certain is Dhruv Jurel replacing Rishabh Pant, who has been ruled out of the 5th Test due to the broken foot that he sustained in the 4th Test.
India will ponder hard over whether Jasprit Bumrah will play in the 5th Test or whether he will be given rest, considering there is only a three-day gap between the fourth and fifth Tests. Before the start of the series, it was mentioned that Bumrah, due to workload management of his back injury, would play in three out of the five Tests in this series.
He has played three Tests already, while he was rested for the second Test. But with the series still alive, will India push him for one more match than had been planned?
India head coach Gautam Gambhir said after the Manchester Test that all of India’s pacers are fit for the 5th Test.
“All the fast bowlers are fit. There are no injury concerns,” Gambhir said after the 4th Test.
This means that, apart from Bumrah, India also have Akash Deep and Arshdeep Singh fit and available for selection.
Also Read: IND vs ENG Pitch and Weather Report for 5th Test at The Oval
Pacer Anshul Kamboj, who made his debut in the 4th Test, looked out of his depth at Test level for now, is likely to make way for Akash Deep.
India could also toy with the idea of replacing Shardul Thakur with either Kuldeep Yadav or Arshdeep. Although neither of these are near the batting ability of Shardul, they will pose a much bigger threat with the ball than Thakur has done in the two Tests he’s played.
England have been known to have a weakness against wrist-spin, and Kuldeep offers the rare variety of left-arm wrist-spin. On what is expected to be another flat and batting-friendly pitch at The Oval, India could be tempted to play Kuldeep in place of Thakur, even if it means playing three spinners in the lineup, something that has rarely happened in England.
IND vs ENG: India Predicted XI For 5th Test at The Oval:
KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur/Kuldeep Yadav, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj
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