Hosts England take on India in the first Test of the 5-match series at the Trent Bridge in Nottingham, starting from Wednesday.

England head into this long Test series, having seen their 7-year unbeaten home run end at the hands of New Zealand back in June. If they are to beat India, they will have to do it without star all-rounder Ben Stokes, who has taken an indefinite break from cricket, and injured fast bowler Jofra Archer.  

Stokes’ absence hugely unbalances and weakens an already fragile batting line-up. They will be forced into a decision on whether to play a frontline spin-bowler in Jack Leach, combined with bowling all-rounder Sam Curran, or strengthen the batting by playing Dan Lawrence and relying on both his and Root’s part-time spin during the match.

The visitors, India, will look to return to winning ways in the Test arena after a heartbreaking loss to New Zealand in the World Test Championship final. Having secured an incredible series victory in Australia at the start of the year, India will be confident of making history by securing a series victory in England for the first time since 2007. 

Virat Kohli will lead the charge, with Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane being the other key batters. Mayank Agarwal will miss the first Test after being hit on the head in the nets, leaving the team with a big decision of playing either an experienced player like KL Rahul or uncapped Abhimanyu Easwaran at the top of the order. The bowling combination is expected to be 4 pacers and 1 spinner, as the 2 spinners-2 pacers strategy did not work well in the WTC Final.

After having been beaten comprehensively in India earlier in the year, England will be out for revenge. On the other hand, India will look to capitalize on the inexperienced batting order of the hosts. All in all, expect a highly entertaining start to a historic Test series between these two nations at Trent Bridge.

Match Details

• Match: England vs. India, 1st Test
• Venue: Trent Bridge, Nottingham
• Date & Time: Aug. 4, 2021, at 3:30 PM IST/11 AM Local

Probable Playing XI

England

Rory Burns, Dominic Sibley, Zak Crawley, Joe Root (C), Jonny Bairstow, Dan Lawrence, Jos Buttler (WK), Sam Curran, Ollie Robinson, Stuart Broad, James Anderson

India

Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Chesteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (C), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj

Weather and Pitch Report

Nottingham is expected to have cloudy conditions on all days of the match, with occasional rain predicted on the first four days. The temperature will be around 21 degrees during the game. 

The pitch at the Trent Bridge has been a result wicket in recent years, making for some exciting red-ball cricket. The surface will allow for good stroke play, with the seam movement keeping the batsmen on their toes. Pacers have been very successful at this venue, taking the majority of the wickets to fall. The average first-innings score at this venue in the last five matches has been 279 runs. 

The teams batting first at this venue have a good record here, winning 3 out of the last 5 Tests played. However, the surface seems to flat out after the first two days and might be best to bat on in the latter days. So the decision can be a bit tricky for the two captains. Any total above 300 runs in the first innings will be a good total on this track.

Top Fantasy Picks

England

• Rory Burns has emerged as one of the reliable batters in this relatively inexperienced English line-up. After a poor tour of India, he was the highest run scorer against New Zealand in June, making 238 runs in two Tests, including 1 century and 1 half century.
• Joe Root has a good record against India, scoring 1789 runs in 36 innings at an average of 54.2, including 5 centuries and 9 half centuries. If England doesn’t pick a frontline spinner, his part-time off-spin is also likely to come in handy during the match.
• James Anderson is one of the toughest bowlers to face in the English conditions. He has taken 617 Test wickets, just 3 wickets away from surpassing Anil Kumble on the list of highest wicket takers in Tests. He is the highest wicket taker at Trent Bridge, with 64 wickets in 10 matches and best figures of 7 for 73.

India

• Rohit Sharma has had success in Test cricket since he started opening the innings at the end of 2019. He has scored 4 centuries in 12 Tests and provided solid starts to the innings in most of the games. He made 64 runs in the two innings of the WTC Final. 
• Virat Kohli had a brilliant tour of England in 2018, scoring big against the likes of James Anderson and Stuart Broad. He scored 578 runs on the last tour at an average of 57.8, including 2 centuries and 2 half centuries. He is key in the middle order for India.
• Ishant Sharma has become a very good red-ball bowler for India in the recent months. He has taken 46 wickets in 21 innings in England at an average of 33.2 and best figures of 7 for 74. Expect him to be penetrative with the relatively old ball here.

Howzat Dream Team

• Wicketkeeper: R Pant
• Batsmen: J Root, R Burns, R Sharma, V Kohli
• All-rounder: R Ashwin, S Curran
• Bowlers: J Anderson, S Broad, M Shami, I Sharma

• Captain: S Curran/J Root
• Vice Captain: V Kohli/R Ashwin

NOTE: The Howzat dream team above is just a suggestion. You can make your fantasy 11 and play fantasy cricket matches. Also, don’t forget to make any necessary changes to your team once the actual playing 11 is announced by each team (30 minutes before the start of the match) as some players you have selected might not be part of the team suggested.

Get fantasy cricket tips on your favorite fantasy sports app and select your own team, Howzat!