Ollie Pope did not spend long thinking. Cloud overhead, grass on the pitch, series on the line – he won the toss and sent India in. “Momentum with India, but England 60:40 favourites,” said former quick Steve Harmison on television a few minutes later. It summed up the slightly odd mood: India have hauled the contest back to 2-2, yet most locals still fancy the hosts.
India’s captain Shubman Gill smiled wryly – he has now lost 15 tosses in a row on this tour. Earlier in the week he joked that the coin had been occupying his thoughts more than England’s bowling plans. Heads went up again, tails came down again, so India will bat first on what looks a seamer’s surface.
Four changes apiece
Gill confirmed three enforced switches. Jasprit Bumrah is being “managed”, Rishabh Pant’s broken foot needs no explanation, and rookie seamer Anshul Kamboj steps aside. In come Prasidh Krishna, wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel and a fully fit Akash Deep. The fourth move is tactical: Karun Nair replaces Shardul Thakur, giving India an extra specialist batter and acknowledging that Thakur’s 27 overs in two Tests have not justified the all-round tag.
England announced their XI 24 hours earlier, partly to calm the chatter over Ben Stokes’ knee. The captain sits out, along with Jofra Archer, Brydon Carse and Liam Dawson. In their place arrive Jacob Bethell, Josh Tongue, Jamie Overton and Gus Atkinson. Bethell, still 23, becomes England’s third debutant of the summer and slots straight into the middle order.
Why bowl first?
Since May 2023 there have been 22 first-class games at The Oval; every single captain has bowled first. The numbers back the instinct. In that period seamers have collected 617 wickets here, spinners just 79. Early movement tends to fade, though, so first-innings runs are not impossible – think 300 rather than 150 if a top order survives the new ball.
England XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (capt), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue.
India XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, B Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (capt), Karun Nair, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Washington Sundar, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj.
Play starts at 11am, weather permitting. A dark sky hangs over south London, but for once the forecast suggests the rain will stay away. That leaves the fast bowlers – and perhaps a nervous Gill – to supply the drama.
