India head coach Gautam Gambhir and skipper Shubman Gill are likely to pull off a big surprise with their playing XI selection for the 5th Test against England
Trailing 1-2 in the 5-match series against England, India might just look to make a few bold changes to the team for the 5th and final Test of the assignment. With Jasprit Bumrah likely to miss out due to ‘workload management’, Arshdeep Singh or Prasidh Krishan is likely to be drafted into the team. However, this isn’t the only change that is expected to be made by India at the Kennington Oval. As many as three more changes are likely to be witnessed as head coach Gautam Gambhir and skipper Shubman Gill look to win the final Test on the tour.
According to a report in Indian Express, Karun Nair is expected to return to the team for the final match of the series after being dropped from the Manchester Test. Nair’s inclusion, however, will come in place of an all-rounder, Shardul Thakur. It was B Sai Sudharsan who had replaced Nair in the 4th Test over poor form. But, the team looks set to trust the veteran batter one more time.
Jasprit Bumrah and Anshul Kamboj are both likely to make way, with Akash Deep set to return to the playing XI. In place of Kamboj, the Indian team has to pick one pacer between Arshdeep Singh and Prasidh Krishna, which is truly a tough call to make.
As per the report, both Arshdeep and Kuldeep Yadav are expected to be snubbed again, with the management persisting with the spin-bowling combination of Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar. Valuing the quality they both bring with the bat, Gambhir and Gill have managed to evade the temptation of adding Kuldeep, a pure spinner, to the playing XI.
Hence, a total of 4 changes are expected to be made in the Indian team for the 5th Test.
Source: https://sports.ndtv.com/england-vs-india-2025/indias-playing-xi-5th-test-with-bold-karun-nair-call-gautam-gambhir-likely-to-make-4-changes-8988828
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