India takes on England in the fourth Test in Ranchi starting from February 23. The match starts at 9.30 pm IST. India won the second and the third Test matches and is leading the series by 2-1. They are also ranked second on the WTC points table.
Heading into the fourth Test against England, Jasprit Bumrah will be rested. The management has decided to rest him keeping in mind his workload. He will now return in the fifth Test in Dharamsala. Meanwhile, Mukesh Kumar who was released ahead of the third Test was added to the Indian squad for the fourth Test. He will replace Bumrah in the XI.
In another big blow, KL Rahul is yet again ruled out of the fourth test. He is yet to recover fully from his quadriceps injury that kept him out of the second and the third Test matches. A BCCI report confirmed Rahul’s absence from the fourth Test. Devdutt Padikkal who was called in as his replacement will continue to be with the team.
The Indian playing XI for the fourth Test pretty much pick themselves in the XI. The batting lineup should remain the same barring Rajat Patidar. After his debut innings of 32 in Vizag, he has bagged three single-digit scores including a duck in the second innings of the third Test. Washington Sundar or Axar Patel can be an ideal replacement for him given that both bat well and provides the team with an extra spinning option.
Also Read: Yashasvi Jaiswal’s father hails Rajasthan Royals’ coach for his son’s emergence in International Cricket
India Playing 11 vs England, 4th Test, 2024
Rohit Sharma (C)
Rohit will open the batting in the fourth Test in Ranchi. He scored 131 in the first innings of the third Test in Rajkot. His best Test innings of 212 came at this very ground in 2019 against South Africa.
Yashasvi Jaiswal
Jaiswal will open the batting with Rohit. He has scored 545 runs in the series so far at an average of 109.00 and a strike rate of 81.10 including 50 fours and 22 sixes. The Southpaw has scored the most runs in Test cricket for India already in 2024.
Shubman Gill
Shubman Gill will bat at three. he scored a duck in the first innings of the third Test and backed it up with 91 in the second innings before was unfortunately run out. Gill has scored 252 runs in the series so far.
Sarfaraz Khan
Sarfaraz will bat at four in KL Rahul’s absence. He made his Test debut in Ranjot and scored back-to-back fifties. His stellar FC record was the talking point before his selection and he has made the most in the first Test.
Dhruv Jurel (WK)
Jurel can bat at five with the likes of Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin to follow him in the lower-middle-order. The keeper-batter also made his Test debut in Rajkot scoring a defining 46. His keeping skills was also impressive.
Ravindra Jadeja
Jadeja will bat at six. He scored a century on his return at his home ground and also took a fifer in the second innings and a seven-wicket haul to cap off a memorable Test match. He has picked up 12 wickets in two Test matches.
Ravichandran Ashwin
Ashwin will slot in at seven. He went past 500 Test wickets in the previous Test and has taken 11 wickets in the series so far. He is one shy of completing 100 Test wickets against England.
Axar Patel / Washington Sundar
One among Axar or Sundar can replace Rajat Patidar and provide the team with an extra bowling option. Both are decent batters as well. While Axar Patel played the first two Test matches, Sundar is yet to play in this series.
Kuldeep Yadav
Kuldeep will bat at nine. He has batted as a nightwatchman for India a couple of times. With the ball, he has picked up eight wickets in two Test matches. He is eight short of 50 Test wickets.
Mohammed Siraj
Siraj will lead the pace attack. He was rested in the second Test and made a comeback in the third picking up four wickets from two Test matches. He has picked up 72 wickets in just 25 Test matches.
Mukesh Kumar
Kumar will replace Bumrah to conclude the likely XI for India. He played the second Test and picked up just one wicket and proved to be very expensive. He conceded 70 runs with the ball in the second Test in Vizag.
Also Read: ‘Virat Kohli’s absence…’- Shubman Gill reacts to Virat Kohli becoming a father again
