England vs India, 5th Test: Match Preview, Head to Head, Playing XI and Broadcast Details

The India tour of England is set to get underway, and the proceedings will start with the rescheduled fifth and the final Test match, which was suppose to take place last year. The all-important clash will kick off on July 1, Friday, at the Edgbaston in Birmingham. India put up a strong performance in the inconclusive series and took a 2-1 lead before the series came to a halt. Hence, the visitors just need to avoid a defeat to clinch the trophy while the Three Lions need a win to level the series 2-2 and share the title. 

Both the camps come into the final Test with some major changes in the squad and coaching team. Last time out, the Indian team was led by captain Virat Kohli with Ravi Shastri as the head coach, and this time, Rohit Sharma is the designated captain of the team while Rahul Dravid is the head coach. Rohit’s availability for the game, however, is subject to his Covid-19 test results.

England, on the other hand, were captained by Joe Root and coached by Chris Silverwood, last. This time, they have a new look with the recent appointments of captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum. England, although are 2-1 down, come into this match as favourites on the back of a 3-0 victory over the Kiwis.

Pitch and conditions

Edgbaston usually offers a good surface for batting, while it is not completely unfavourable to the bowlers. The wicket is not generally flat like at Trent Bridge or with a bit of grass like at Lord’s. It offers some seam, bounce and turn with some application, and always keeps the bowlers in the game. The team winning the toss is expected to bat first and put runs on the board.

Playing Combinations for ENG vs IND

England

The English side might, more or less, go with the same team as they did in their previous Test against New Zealand, and stick to the winning combination. However, we might see their talismanic pacer, James Anderson, come back into the playing XI, replacing Jamie Overton. Also, wicketkeeper-batter Ben Foakes’s availability is still uncertain as he was out due to Covid-19, and Sam Billings might be given the keeping gloves in the former’s absence.

Predicted Playing XI: Alex Lees, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes/Sam Billings (wk), Stuart Broad, Matthew Potts, Jack Leach, James Anderson.

India

The Indian team looks unsettled with the availability of Rohit being uncertain and with opener KL Rahul out injured. As Rohit is all but ruled out of the contest, pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will handle the reins of the team. There might be a toss-up between Mohammed Siraj and Ravichandran Ashwin, and the final call would be taken after assessing the track conditions. 

Predicted Playing XI:

Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj/Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah (c)

ENG vs IND Head to Head

Played- 130 | England- 49 | India- 31 | Draw – 50 |

ENG vs IND Broadcast Details

Match Timings – 3:00 PM IST

Live Streaming – Sony Sports Network and Sony LIV app