England are travelling to Manchester to claim the 5-match Test series against India. Already up 2-1, with a win in the fourth Test, Ben Stokes’ team can deliver the deadly blow at Old Trafford. England had made one change for the Lord’s Test and will be forced to make their XI again.
Replacement spinner
One of the changes will be replacing Shoaib Bashir. The off-spinner has been ruled out of the India vs England Test series with a finger injury. Liam Dawson was announced as his replacement. In the past, Dawson was taken along with the squad and wasn’t played. But in the last 12 months or so, he’s directly told the board he’ll only be part of the squad if guaranteed a spot.
Therefore, it’s safe to assume that Dawson would play. Also, he’s the sole spinner in the team. Joe Root isn’t more than a part-timer and has bowled just 28.1 overs across 6 innings. He’s a lock-in.
Jofra Archer to continue, Chris Woakes out
Jofra Archer should continue. Granted, he bowled 39.2 overs at Lord’s, but an 8-day break should be enough for him to be at 100%. Archer bowled with real venom, and his control improved as the match went along. Considering that he had bowled just 18 overs for Surrey, Archer should be fresh. He wants to play the Manchester Test as well.
“I can play the other two (Test matches) if they let me. I don’t want to lose this series and told Keysy (ECB managing director Rob Key) that I wanted to play the Test summer,” Archer had said after the Lord’s Test.
However, one player would be dropped. And it’ll be Chris Woakes. Considering a proper all-rounder in England, the 36-year-old has done miserably with both bat and ball. His speed has gone down by around 5-10 km/h. Woakes has never been tight with his lines and, even on helpful surfaces, hasn’t extracted much out of the surface. He’s been forgetful with the new ball as well. With the bat, he has scored 60 runs in 5 innings.
Playing Woakes at Old Trafford, which might be another flat wicket, doesn’t seem wise. England is likely to bring Gus Atkinson. He has been their best pacer since his Test debut in July 2024 and has 55 wickets in just 12 matches. Atkinson was injured, and that’s why he wasn’t playing, but since he’s been added, without a doubt, he’ll play.
Predicted England Playing XI for 4th India Test
Batters: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith (wk)
All-rounders: Ben Stokes (c), Brydon Carse, Liam Dawson (in)
Bowlers: Jofra Archer, Gus Atkinson (in)
Bench: Jacob Bethell, Chris Woakes (out), Josh Tongue
