England Choose To Bowl First In High-Stakes Clash vs India
A loss here at Manchester would hand England the series, making IND vs ENG 4th Test match a virtual must-win for the visitors.
The fourth Test between India and England takes place at Old Trafford, Manchester from July 23, with hosts England leading the five-match series 2-1.
After a commanding performance in the third Test, England come into this contest with momentum firmly on their side, while India are in desperate need of a win to stay alive in the series.
India's top order has been inconsistent, with key batters failing to convert starts. Skipper Shubman Gill will need to anchor the innings, while players like Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul must rise to the occasion. The Indian bowling attack, led by Jasprit Bumrah and Siraj, has had its moments in English conditions.
For England, Ben Stokes' leadership, Zak Crawley’s explosive batting and Joe Root’s reliability have been crucial. The pitch at Manchester traditionally offers bounce and movement early on but tends to flatten out, bringing spinners into play later in the match.
With the series on the line, India will have to bring their best cricket to level the contest. A loss here would hand England the series, making this clash a virtual must-win for the visitors.
IND vs ENG 4th Test Toss Update: England have won the toss and have opted to field.
Playing XIs
India XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Rishabh Pant(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Anshul Kamboj.
England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Liam Dawson, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer.
What captains said...
Shubman Gill: I was actually confused. Good toss to lose. The way we've played in the last three Tests has been outstanding. Some crunch moments we've lost, but we've won more sessions than them. You need a bit of a break. All three Tests were intense. Looks like a good surface. There's some forecast around in the four-five days.
Ben Stokes: We're going to have a bowl. Decent overhead conditions for bowling. We've had a good break in between. Good chance for everyone to head back home and get the batteries recharged. Everyone left everything out on the field at Lord's. We've had three games go down to the final session, which says a lot about the quality of the teams. Typical Manchester wicket. Quite firm. Some grass. Dawson back in the team - long time since the last Test but he's gone well over the years.
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