England and India conclude a fascinating Test series in which the drama and intrigue has only been added to by the chippy nature of the two sides as the competitiveness has come to the boil recently. The Oval stages the final game which begins on Thursday.
England know that with a 2-1 lead they are assured of a share of the series but they will want to go down under with a series win. India will arrive in the capital knowing they have to win this match for their efforts over the last few weeks to yield any reward.
England
This series has been so compelling that England went into the fourth Test at Old Trafford last week having been a distinct second best in the series but with a 2-1 lead and then they came out of the five days probably ruing the fact that they haven’t already won the series. They were in control of that match from the second day onwards but they couldn’t force a result on a pretty bang average pitch and now need five more days of graft if they are to get the series win.
The one thing we have seen from England in the last two games in particular is that their batting is in good order. The eye here will be on their bowlers, not just to see whether they can take 20 wickets to win the Test match but whether they can maintain pressure because this is the last time we are going to see England in red ball attention prior to The Ashes. The one thing we do know is this England side will approach the match as a win first option but it will be interesting to see whether they will play for a draw if the situation dictates it.
India
The flip side of all of that is India will have headed to Manchester unable to believe their luck that they weren’t ahead in the series let alone that they are behind in it and now they come away from Old Trafford relieved that they are still in with a chance of leaving England with a draw after a stunning rearguard action on the final day. Having escaped from well behind, they will be looking to hit the ground running here and get ahead of the game.
If India have been guilty of anything in this series so far it is sometimes lacking a bit of oomph with the bat. In the matches where they were ahead in the proceedings, they didn’t really have that player who could just manipulate the bowling and in the end they sacrificed those positions. They will need the whole XI to perform well in all four innings here if they are going to win the match and you just wonder if the bowling attack has lost too much of its pep.
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Team News
England have confirmed their XI in advance as they usually do these days and they have made four changes to their side. Ben Stokes sits this one out with injury with Ollie Pope captaining the side. Liam Dawson, Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse also make way with Jacob Bethell, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue and Gus Atkinson coming in.
India are yet to name their side but we know there will be at least two changes with Rishabh Pant ruled out with injury and Jasprit Bumrah sitting out as his game time is managed. Dhruv Jurel and Akash Deep are expected to return while Shardul Thakur and Anshul Kamboj are vulnerable after ineffective matches in Manchester.
Betting
I’ll conclude the series with a couple of bets with the first of them being on Joe Root to cover his performance line of 105.5 points. I’m a little surprised his line is as low as this when you consider that his last two first innings in this series have yielded 104 and 150 runs. He could easily cover this with the bat again even though The Oval isn’t a ground where he has the best record with the bat. He is such an improved player now and looks to be batting with rest confidence and as the experienced man in the line up the fancy shots should be put away. England haven’t named a recognised spinner for the match and with India having so many left handers you would imagine at some point Root will bowl, as he has done in seven of the eight innings in this series. Add in catches at slip and this line doesn’t look high enough for a man who has made 144 and 150 in terms of runs in the last two matches.
The other bet I like is the 12/1 on Washington Sundar to top score for India in the first innings. He moved up to five in the second innings at Old Trafford and with Dhruv Jurel probably pencilled in as a number seven it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Sundar come out at five here and if he does then this price could be big, especially if England have won the toss and bowl first on a pitch with something in it after the rain has passed through the capital overnight and into the morning. That could see the openers go quickly so the top score would be in sight. I think we saw at Old Trafford that Sundar will play a traditional innings but with no Archer or Carse to worry about he might well be able to build his confidence further and after a maiden Test ton he is value here.
Tips
Back J.Root’s Performance – Over 105.5pts for a 3/10 stake at 1.83 with Bet365
Back W.Sundar Top India 1st Inns Batter for a 1/10 stake at 13.00 with Bet365
