Ben Stokes becomes the 76th cricketer to feature in 100 Tests, 16th for England. Players with 100 or more Test caps (by country) 16 - England 15 - Australia 13 - India 9 - West Indies 8 - South Africa 6 - Sri Lanka 5 - Pakistan 4 - New Zealand
Pravin: Pound-for-pound: isn't Axar better than Siraj? More runs for sure. More wickets, probably. Plus, haven't we are already seen that except Bumrah, pacers have been bashed by English batsmen? If England can go in with 1 seamer (in the past), why can't we with arguably much better spinning talent? ---- you make a very good point but Rajkot is generally a good batting wicket, so India might have been tempted to go with an extra seamer and if it reverses then Siraj is a major threat.
India have their task cut out.
Teams:
India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj
England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes(c), Ben Foakes(w), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson
Ben Stokes: We would've batted first too. Time flies when you're having fun. Fair reflection of both teams, we've been very happy with the way we've gone about things in the first two Tests.
India have won the toss and have opted to bat
Rohit Sharma: We're going to bat first.
India have won the toss and have opted to bat
Pitch report by Deep Dasgupta and Nick Knight: Looks an absolutely fantastic surface. A little bit two-toned, some dry cracks near the wickets but as we move down, there’s a nice covering of grass and it’s hard. There’s a green tinge, enough in the surface for the quicks. Little bit of rough outside the stumps but not much for the spinners - at least in the first couple of days. There’s some moisture as we go towards the business parts of the pitch. There are cracks but they might not really open up soon. Great batting surface. The grass might help the seamers early on and an aggressive captain might bowl first. Day 2 and 3 will be great to bat on.
Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel have been handed their Test caps so that's confirmation that both are playing.
Should the wicket indeed be relatively flat like early reports have suggested, it'll perhaps be another factor that plays into England's favour as well. England opted to bring in the extra pace of Mark Wood for this game at the expense of the third spinner Bashir suggesting their need for an enforcer when the pitch doesn't offer much for the bowlers. Eventually, the game might come down to the difference in the batting approach of the two sides. England have shown us they can be fearless and they will score quickly. The onus is now in India's young batters to overcome the inevitable air of timidness that surrounds a big stage like this.
8:15am: With the series taking over a week-long pause, we're back in Rajkot as this enthralling series gears up for resumption. England have already shown that they can pose India the kind of challenge that no team has even come close to on Indian soil in the recent past and with the series currently standing at 1-1, the result of this game will prove to be pivotal in the result of the series.
Preview by Vijay Tagore
The morning chill was lingering, not exactly willing to make way for the warmth of the day, as Rahul Dravid stood on the ground, his gaze fixed on the Rajkot pitch. So immersed was he in studying the surface that one might easily mistake him for a student of pedology, or perhaps a soil scientist. He would not like to be distracted.
Over the past two days, the once grassy rectangle had transformed into a track of brown hue. Undoubtedly, Dravid had played a role in the metamorphosis of the pitch, a blend of clay and black soil. While these ingredients are not best known for fostering high bounce, they certainly promise good turn. Yet, it was far from a rank turner.
Typically, such a surface favours batters over bowlers, prompting Dravid to anticipate potential blowpack over the pitch preparation. The Indian batters, far from their imperious and domineering selves in home series, had succumbed to the English spinners more readily than R. Ashwin & Co. had subdued the audacious enterprise and belligerence of Ben Stokes's batters.
However, the focus here is more on the English spinners than their batters. They claimed 12 wickets more than their Indian counterparts, bowled significantly more maiden overs (38-17), and boasted a superior average compared to the home team's Ashwin & Co. (33.9-38.39).
The crux of the contest in the third Test would revolve around how the Indian batters would fare against the English spinners. With an inexperienced batting lineup, bereft of Virat Kohli and KL Rahul, the Indian side faced a formidable challenge in handling the English spinners who, despite their relative inexperience, remained disciplined and effective.
"These youngsters have showcased their talent in domestic cricket," remarked Ravindra Jadeja referring to youngsters like Rajat Patidar, Sharfaraz Khan, and Dhruv Jurel.The last two names are poised to make their Test debut, presenting a significant opportunity on home turf. "Their consistent performances in domestic cricket have earned them this chance. It's reassuring that they're debuting at home rather than abroad, like in Australia or South Africa," Jadeja added, expressing confidence in the young batters.
England, once contemplating fielding four spinners, had opted for a change in strategy, favoring an additional pacer, Mark Wood, over a third spinner, Shoaib Bashir. Thus, they assembled a four-man attack spearheaded by James Anderson, complemented by Rehan Ahmed and Tom Hartley in the spin department, with Joe Root providing more than supplementary assistance.
" I think bringing in an extra seamer this week is the option we've gone with because we think that's going to give us the best chance of winning," Ben Stokes said, banking on the pitch's anticipated deterioration as the Test progressed. England aimed to capitalize on the inexperience and vulnerability of the Indian batting lineup. The stage is now set for the young Indian batters to rise to the occasion.
When: India vs England, 3rd Test, February 15-19, 2024, 09:30 AM IST
Where: Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot
What to expect: Lot of runs. The last time a Test was played here (in 2018), India had three first-innings centurions and won the game by an innings and 272 runs against West Indies. In the only other Test at the venue, India and England played out a high scoring draw in 2016.
Team News:
India
With KL Rahul out injured, Sarfaraz Khan is in line for his Test debut. India could also ring in a change behind the stumps, giving Dhruv Jurel his first Test cap too.
Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Mohd. Siraj.
England
As expected, England announced their XI on the eve of the fixture - going with a two-pace, three-spin combination by bringing back Wood for Bashir.
England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson
Did you know:
- Ben Stokes is three wickets away from joining Gary Sobers and Jacques Kallis to complete a double of 6000 runs and 200 wickets in the format.
- R Ashwin is 1 wicket away from becoming only the 2nd Indian player to take 500 in this format.
- If he were to get the cap, only five other India batters will have had a higher first class average on debut than Sarfaraz Khan's 69.85
What they said:
"I won't term England as (one of the most difficult teams). They have an aggressive style of play. We need to get used to that and plan accordingly for them. If not for small mistakes here and there in the second innings of the first Test, we would have won it." - Ravindra Jadeja on whether England have been the toughest touring side to India
"I think Bash (Shoaib Bashir) performed incredibly well in his first game for England. He'll just take it in a stride. He's a young lad, he obviously would want to play every game possible, but I've got no doubt that there will be more opportunities for him going forward in the series." - Ben Stokes on leaving out one spinner from the XI for the Test
England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson
Squads:
India Squad: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Srikar Bharat(w), Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mukesh Kumar, Mohammed Siraj, Ravindra Jadeja, Sarfaraz Khan, Washington Sundar, Dhruv Jurel, Akash Deep
England Squad: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes(c), Ben Foakes(w), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, James Anderson, Shoaib Bashir, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson, Daniel Lawrence, Gus Atkinson