IND vs ENG 5th Test: Day 1 of Manchester Test postponed

IND vs ENG 5th Test: Day 1 of Manchester Test postponed due to Covid-19 outbreak in Indian camp, BCCI & ECB to take call after more test results come in – The cloud over the fate of the fifth Test between India and England remains as it was decided that the game will not start in Manchester on Friday. This after long the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) had long discussions on Thursday and Friday.

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Speaking to ANI, sources in the know of developments confirmed the development and said more test results will be taken into consideration before taking a call. “Yes, it is not starting today. More test results are awaited before a call is taken on starting on Saturday,” the source said. Ahead of the fifth and final Test against England, Parmar tested positive for COVID-19 in Manchester. This had led to Team India’s training session for Thursday afternoon being cancelled
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However, there are no COVID-19 related worries in the England camp and Jos Buttler said everything is fine and the hosts are looking forward to the game.

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“We don’t know too much about it at the moment. It would be naive to speculate on what’s going on. At the moment we’re fully expecting the game to go ahead and we’re preparing that way so fingers crossed the game will go ahead. Things are fine in our camp and we are looking forward to the game,” said Buttler in a virtual press conference.

This came after India head coach Ravi Shastri, bowling coach Bharat Arun and fielding coach R Sridhar returned positive results to their RT-PCR tests during the fourth Test.

They are currently undergoing isolation and can come out only after returning two negative results.

On Sunday, just half an hour before the start of play on Day 4 of the fourth Test, the BCCI said its medical team had isolated Shastri, Bharat Arun, Sridhar, and physio Nitin Patel as a precautionary measure after Shastri’s lateral flow test returned positive on Saturday evening.

The remaining members of the Team India contingent had undergone two Lateral Flow Tests — one on Saturday night and another on Sunday morning. The members upon returning negative COVID reports were allowed to proceed for Day 4 of the fourth Test at The Oval against England.

Preview

After Covid-19 threat is averted on INDIA vs ENGLAND Manchester test, all eyes are on India’s Playing XI for the final match of the series. Virat Kohli & Co is on cusp of history & with the conditions set to be overcast with chances of intermittent rain, team is all set to retain his four-seamer template but it is Ajinkya Rahane’s whose place is in question. The vice-captain is going through a rough patch and is all set to be rested — rather replaced with either Hanuma Vihari or Suryakumar Yadav – Follow IND vs ENG live on InsideSport.co

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India Playing XI: Ajinkya Rahane all set to be replaced, Bumrah likely to be rested as Virat Kohli & Co aim to wrap IND vs ENG series in 5th & final test

India Playing XI – IND vs ENG 5^th Test: While the batting coach Vikram Rathour backed the out-of-form Ajinkya Rahane, the team management doesn’t want his form to affect the result of the Manchester Test. Virat Kohli & Co have a golden opportunity to win the Test series in England after 14 years. But as Ajinkya Rahane is the weak link in the Playing XI at present, he can be booted out with either Hanuma Vihari or Suryakumar Yadav getting the nod.

India Playing XI – IND vs ENG 5^th Test: Why is Ajinkya Rahane under the scanner?

Ajinkya Rahane, the top scorer for India in the first WTC cycle, has endured a poor run in England.
In seven innings, Ajinkya Rahane has scored 109 runs at an average of just 15.57 with the highest score of 61.
In fact, in the series, he has registered three single-digit scores including a duck besides two below 20 scores.
His lack of runs has put the lower order under pressure. Had it not been for Shardul Thakur in the Oval Test, India wouldn’t have put up a 191-run total in the first innings.
His batting technique has also been questioned by the likes of Sunil Gavaskar.

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India Playing XI – IND vs ENG 5^th Test: Who will replace Ajinkya Rahane?

India have two options at their disposal — Hanuma Vihari and Suryakumar Yadav. While Hanuma Vihari is accustomed to the conditions having been in England since May, he is the best candidate to replace Rahane. But he too hasn’t had a great run in England. In County matches, he scored 0 & 8, 32 & 52, 8 & 0 while in the warm-up match for India, he only scored 24 & 43*.

Suryakumar Yadav on the other hand hasn’t played red-ball cricket since 2020 Ranji Trophy although he has been in prime form in white-ball cricket. Furthermore, Suryakumar Yadav doesn’t have any experience of playing in England. Throwing him at difficult conditions could be detrimental. But the team management could explore this option after Playing Ravindra Jadeja at No 5 failed miserably in the Oval Test.

India Playing XI – IND vs ENG 5^th Test: Jasprit Bumrah is likely to be rested?

Another potential change could be Jasprit Bumrah. His 6-3-6-2 spell after lunch rattled England in the 4^th Test. He is India’s highest wicket-taker of the series for India with 18 scalps. But he has already bowled 151 overs in the series, third-highest. With the IPL 2021 and T20 World Cup coming, the team management and the BCCI are not ready to take any risk.

As Mohammed Shami was rested for the 4^th Test, Jasprit Bumrah can be given rest to manage his workload.

Also Read in Hindi:

In his place, Shami will come back in while Umesh Yadav is expected to retain his place considering he bowled well, taking six wickets in the match.

India Playing XI – IND vs ENG 5^th Test:

Openers: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, No 3: Cheteshwar Pujara, No 4; Virat Kohli, No 5: Hanuma Vihari/Suryakumar Yadav, No 6: Rishabh Pant (WK), No 7: Ravindra Jadeja, No 8: Shardul Thakur, No 9: Mohammed Shami / Jasprit Bumrah, No 10: Umesh Yadav, No 11: Mohammed Siraj.

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