ENG vs IND fourth Test Preview | India look to bounce back in bid to level series in Manchester

Today at 8:33 PM

India will face England in the fourth Test in Manchester from Wednesday with the hosts 2-1 ahead in the five-match series after their narrow win at Lord’s. Meanwhile, the visitors are still searching for their first win in the 10th match at the venue as they look to level the contest.

‌After a battle of attrition in the last Game at Lord’s, India and England gear up yet again as they face off in the fourth Test at Old Trafford in Manchester from Wednesday. With England inching ahead in the marquee five-match contest after their thrilling 22-run win at Lord’s, the visitors will have to play catch up to keep the series alive at a venue that has not favoured them traditionally. India are yet to win at Old Trafford after losing four and drawing five in their nine encounters.

England will have momentum behind them after grinding out a positive result in a match which was indifferent to their Bazball template set under the duo of Brendon McCullum and Ben Stokes. Joe Root shone with a sensible batting display top scoring in both innings, hitting 104 and 40, where England scored at an average of 3.26 runs an over.

But India disappointed with their shoddy batting display in the second innings of the last Test with pacer Jofra Archer making an impactful return along with Stokes’ lion-hearted effort with the ball. Only Ravindra Jadeja showed some patience and application in a bid to chase down a sub-200 total.

But the overall numbers so far in the series, with bat and ball, have been dominated by the visitors. Indian captain Shubman Gill leads the run charts amassing 607 runs at an astonishing average of 101.16, scoring three centuries in six innings. Vice-captain Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja all feature in the top-five with Jamie Smith being the lone presence for the home side with 415 runs averaging 103.75.

The bowling department also tells a similar story with the pace trio of Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah and Akash Deep at the top of the tree with 13, 12 and 11 wickets, respectively. Meanwhile, England captain Stokes has led from the front, alongside Josh Tongue, with both players picking up 11 wickets.

Form Guide

ENG Form: LWWLW

IND Form: LLLWL

ENG vs IND head-to-head in Tests

England clearly have an edge over India in Test matches, scoring 53 wins in 139 matches while India have won 36, with 50 games ending in draws. However, India boasts a better record in the last 10 matches with six wins compared to England’s four.

ENG 53 - 36 IND

Pitch and Conditions

Old Trafford is expected to be a seamer-friendly surface with overcast conditions assisting the quicker bowlers. England have an excellent record at the venue, winning four of the last five games played here. Meanwhile, India are yet to win a game at this venue, losing four and drawing five in nine games.

The fourth Test match will start under overcast and rainy conditions on Wednesday with temperatures around the 19-degree mark and chances of rain at 70%. It will be sunny and pleasant for the next three days, with temperatures expected to be around 22 degrees. However, rain is forecast for the final day with a 55% chance of a downpour expected to interrupt proceedings in the middle.

Team News

India will be without Nitish Kumar Reddy after the all-rounder injured his left knee, and is expected to be replaced by Shardul Thakur. Akash Deep, who suffered a groin strain, will take the field with Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj if declared fit.

For England, Shoaib Bashir’s injury opens up the spot of the specialist spinner for the fourth Test, and it will be interesting to see whether they will play Jacob Bethell and further bolster their batting or put their money on Liam Dawson. With Gus Atkinson waiting in the wings, England may be tempted to manage Brydon Carse’s workload.

ENG Expected XI

Ben Stokes (c), Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson, Liam Dawson

IND Expected XI

Shubman Gill (c), KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep

Broadcasting Platforms

The ENG vs IND fourth Test match will be digitally streamed on the Jio Hotstar app and website in India, with the telecast of the same on the Sony Sports Network from 3:30 PM IST on Wednesday.