AssassinatedDevil
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It’s the battle royale. Virat Kohli’s India are in England, looking to establish themselves as the best travellers and the undisputed No.1 in Tests.
The five-Test series follows limited-overs contests that swung both ways: India took the Twenty20 Internationals, England the one-day internationals.
But while the sides were close in white-ball formats, the five-day match-up promises to be an especially intriguing one. For one, India are No.1 on the MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings, while England are No.5. However, Joe Root and his men have the home advantage and will want to make England’s 1000th Test a special one.
Having already spent a month in England and Ireland, the visitors will believe they are attuned enough to the conditions to give themselves a good chance at victory. It is success they are desperate for, considering they had to return disappointed last time around in 2014, when they lost 3-1.
India’s Ajinkya Rahane insisted attitude would be key. "It's important that as well as working on our skill sets, we prepare our mindset, especially here in England. I feel that it will be a test of our mind and character here,” he said.
In their three-day warm-up game, the Indian pacers did well, and Kohli and KL Rahul were among the runs, but there was little clarity on what their top order would be and they were left with a few selection questions.
The hosts might have the home advantage, but their recent struggles in red-ball cricket have been alarming. They drew the home series against Pakistan, after away losses to New Zealand and Australia.
The timely return to form of Root and the good touch shown by Alastair Cook in the lead-up to the Test series bodes well for them.
With the country under an extended hot, dry spell, and given their success in the limited overs, much has been said about how the spinners will fare, especially India’s Kuldeep Yadav and England’s Adil Rashid, while England have brought in a number of leg-spinners to bowl to their batsmen at the nets.
England confirmed their XI for the match on the eve of the match, with Rashid, who has been the subject of much debate in the last week after he announced his return to availability for Test cricket, despite signing a white-ball contract with Yorkshire for this season, included.
There was no room for his spin buddy Moeen Ali, however, while Surrey's Sam Curran maintains his place in the side as the fourth seamer, most recently taking two wickets in the victorious second Test against Pakistan in June.
Essex quick Jamie Porter joins Moeen as the two members of the 13-man squad who aren't included in the team. England captain Joe Root also confirmed that Jos Buttler will be vice-captain for the five-match series, a role the batsman has undertaken in the ODI side.
All in all, it will be a series of many mini battles: Captain Kohli v Captain Root; Kohli the batsman v Root the batsman, Anderson v Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin v Cook, Hardik Pandya v Ben Stokes, England's spinners v India's ... Let the game begin!
Key players
Virat Kohli (India): Despite his protestations, this one will be personal for Kohli. He had a miserable run on his last visit to England, and it is no secret that he is keen to give his figures here a makeover. All eyes will be on how he deals with the moving ball and stays patient with the England pacers likely to test him with an outside-off line. Besides, given the team's recent top-order concerns, they will look to him to bring stability at No.4. He warmed up with a half-century under pressure in the warm-up game, and will want to continue from there.
James Anderson (England): England's highest wicket-taker in Tests has had a six-week break to rest a troublesome shoulder. His challenge will be to first stay fit for a gruelling summer, and then be at his best to tease the Indian top order with pace and movement. Edgbaston is happy hunting grounds for him.
Conditions
It has been dry and hot in England – almost like Mumbai or Chennai, according to Rahane – but recent rains and the work done at the ground have suggested that it will still be one that helps the seamers and the batsmen. It is expected to be cloudy on Wednesday, with highs of 22°C.
Squads
England XI: Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, Alastair Cook, Sam Curran, Keaton Jennings, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Ben Stokes.
India (from): Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Karun Nair, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur.
https://icc-cricket.com/news/790241
The five-Test series follows limited-overs contests that swung both ways: India took the Twenty20 Internationals, England the one-day internationals.
But while the sides were close in white-ball formats, the five-day match-up promises to be an especially intriguing one. For one, India are No.1 on the MRF Tyres ICC Test Team Rankings, while England are No.5. However, Joe Root and his men have the home advantage and will want to make England’s 1000th Test a special one.
Having already spent a month in England and Ireland, the visitors will believe they are attuned enough to the conditions to give themselves a good chance at victory. It is success they are desperate for, considering they had to return disappointed last time around in 2014, when they lost 3-1.
India’s Ajinkya Rahane insisted attitude would be key. "It's important that as well as working on our skill sets, we prepare our mindset, especially here in England. I feel that it will be a test of our mind and character here,” he said.
In their three-day warm-up game, the Indian pacers did well, and Kohli and KL Rahul were among the runs, but there was little clarity on what their top order would be and they were left with a few selection questions.
The hosts might have the home advantage, but their recent struggles in red-ball cricket have been alarming. They drew the home series against Pakistan, after away losses to New Zealand and Australia.
The timely return to form of Root and the good touch shown by Alastair Cook in the lead-up to the Test series bodes well for them.
With the country under an extended hot, dry spell, and given their success in the limited overs, much has been said about how the spinners will fare, especially India’s Kuldeep Yadav and England’s Adil Rashid, while England have brought in a number of leg-spinners to bowl to their batsmen at the nets.
England confirmed their XI for the match on the eve of the match, with Rashid, who has been the subject of much debate in the last week after he announced his return to availability for Test cricket, despite signing a white-ball contract with Yorkshire for this season, included.
There was no room for his spin buddy Moeen Ali, however, while Surrey's Sam Curran maintains his place in the side as the fourth seamer, most recently taking two wickets in the victorious second Test against Pakistan in June.
Essex quick Jamie Porter joins Moeen as the two members of the 13-man squad who aren't included in the team. England captain Joe Root also confirmed that Jos Buttler will be vice-captain for the five-match series, a role the batsman has undertaken in the ODI side.
All in all, it will be a series of many mini battles: Captain Kohli v Captain Root; Kohli the batsman v Root the batsman, Anderson v Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin v Cook, Hardik Pandya v Ben Stokes, England's spinners v India's ... Let the game begin!
Key players
Virat Kohli (India): Despite his protestations, this one will be personal for Kohli. He had a miserable run on his last visit to England, and it is no secret that he is keen to give his figures here a makeover. All eyes will be on how he deals with the moving ball and stays patient with the England pacers likely to test him with an outside-off line. Besides, given the team's recent top-order concerns, they will look to him to bring stability at No.4. He warmed up with a half-century under pressure in the warm-up game, and will want to continue from there.
James Anderson (England): England's highest wicket-taker in Tests has had a six-week break to rest a troublesome shoulder. His challenge will be to first stay fit for a gruelling summer, and then be at his best to tease the Indian top order with pace and movement. Edgbaston is happy hunting grounds for him.
Conditions
It has been dry and hot in England – almost like Mumbai or Chennai, according to Rahane – but recent rains and the work done at the ground have suggested that it will still be one that helps the seamers and the batsmen. It is expected to be cloudy on Wednesday, with highs of 22°C.
Squads
England XI: Joe Root (c), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, Alastair Cook, Sam Curran, Keaton Jennings, Dawid Malan, Adil Rashid, Ben Stokes.
India (from): Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Karun Nair, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur.
https://icc-cricket.com/news/790241
and pujara misses out. Shami, Umesh & Ishant will be key here.
Yea, but I am sure Root will definitely score 50+ 
