It seems a host of changes are lined up for the Gautam Gambhir-coached side come the fourth Test match in Manchester. After a hard-fought game at Lord’s, India enter Old Trafford in a must-win situation. Now, every move will be ever so critical, starting with India’s Playing XI. According to reports, India is likely to tweak their side, albeit due to fitness concerns.
Pant’s injury could spell doom for Nair
India lost Rishabh Pant’s wicket-keeping services in the first innings of the Lord’s Test. He injured his left hand while gathering a wayward delivery from Jasprit Bumrah. Soon, Dhruv Jurel came in as a stand-in keeper, with Pant batting across both the innings.
Once again in the next Test, the star southpaw can participate but only as a batter. It looks like he isn’t 100% to keep wickets. Hence, according to CricBlogger, Dhruv Jurel has to start and thus will walk in to replace a struggling Karun Nair. Despite playing all three Tests and batting six times, Nair is yet to hit a fifty. He has gotten starts but has failed every time. Hence, Jurel can be a great option to replace Nair as a batter and Pant as a keeper.
India cannot afford to drop Pant, who has been perhaps the best Test batter for the country since his debut. No Indian batter has a better average (44.38) or, of course, strike rate (74.19) than Pant since his debut. Therefore, Pant was anyway going to be selected as long as he is fit to bat. Even in this series, Pant’s effect has been massive, having racked up 425 runs at 70.83.
Meanwhile, it could mean that the Lord’s Test could be the end of Karun Nair’s Test career. In three Tests, Nair claimed just 131 at 21.83. There’s no doubt that he’s looked solid, but the runs haven’t flown off his bat. Hence, India is most likely to put Dhruv Jurel in his position. Jurel, meanwhile, has done superbly in the chances he has had. In the two-match series against England Lions, Jurel clubbed 227 runs at 75.67, giving us an indicator that he can make runs in England.
Kuldeep Yadav to finally get a chance
CricBlogger’s report further reveals that India will finally include Kuldeep Yadav, whose absence has been questioned by fans after every Test. The left-arm spinner will walk in place of Akash Deep, who also might not be fit enough.
Many fans and pundits have frequently put forward their desire to see Kuldeep play. Dubbed as an X-factor spinner, Kuldeep could be a genuine wicket-taker, especially against the aggressive English batters. When England toured India in February 2024, Kuldeep starred with 19 wickets across eight innings.
However, he won’t come in for a spinner. Instead, Akash Deep experienced a concerning groin injury incident during Day 4 of the 3rd Test between India and England. After limping off the field, he struggled to complete his overs. According to reports, the bowler had been dealing with a sore back since the team arrived in Manchester, and the support staff was working hard to get him fit for the match on schedule. However, according to TOI, he and Bumrah won’t play a Test together, meaning Akash Deep was likely to be excluded anyway for the Manchester match.
On the other hand, Arshdeep Singh is all but confirmed to be ruled out for the 4th Test as he sustained a cut on his hand while training. As a result, Anshul Kamboj has been added to India’s squad just before the Manchester match.
India’s Predicted Playing XI for 4th Test
- Yashasvi Jaiswal
- KL Rahul
- Dhruv Jurel
- Shubman Gill
- Rishabh Pant
- Nitish Kumar Reddy
- Ravindra Jadeja
- Washington Sundar
- Kuldeep Yadav
- Jasprit Bumrah
- Mohammed Siraj
