Ben Stokes has made two changes to his England XI for the must-win fourth Test against India that starts in Ranchi on Friday. It looks like a reaction rather than over-reaction, drafting in Ollie Robinson and Shoaib Bashir on what he expects to be a spinning pitch.
Mark Wood and Rehan Ahmed are the players to drop out from the 434-run defeat in Rajkot that put the tourists 2-1 down with two to play, Stokes attributing the former’s omission to his heavy workload and a desire to ensure he can operate at maximum pace.
While Bashir, 20, returns to win his second Test cap – the scruffy surface in Ranchi appearing more conducive to finger spin, certainly – it could be viewed as Jimmy Anderson being preferred to Ahmed in the final shake-up.
The leg-spinner has struggled for economy in this series, going at 4.08 runs per over, while Anderson, albeit taken down by double-centurion Yashasvi Jaiswal on the final day of the third Test, does generally offer greater control. He also is four away from 700 wickets in Test cricket, with Stokes banking on that experience.
It is also testament to Anderson’s fitness and hunger that, aged 41, he feels ready to go again after a five-day turnaround that follows 38 overs in Rajkot. Robinson, replacing Wood, brings height to the fold, something that could prove relevant should variable bounce enter the equation over the coming days.
Stokes, meanwhile, has not committed to bowling himself in the match despite upping his workloads in training this past week. The body was good, he said, following a heavy session two days out from the contest but a return to full all-rounder status after knee surgery in November may depend on how the match unfolds.
“As keen as I am to get there, I do have to be very sensible about it,” he said. “I feel like the spin will be assisted here but I also feel having two seamers gives us a good chance purely because of Ollie Robinson’s release height and his relentlessness with his areas.
“Someone like Bashir, who releases the ball from such a high release point, the extra bounce that he gets we also feel is going to bring us more into the game.”
Having pointedly called the pitch “interesting” on Wednesday, Stokes took a further look at the surface – one with notable cracks down one side – before naming his XI.
Stokes said: “We get asked about the pitch and we give our opinion. That doesn’t mean we are going in with too many preconceived ideas. It could be as flat as a pancake, who knows? If it is, we will adapt. If it does more than we think it will, we will adapt to that as well. We won’t let those conversations seep into what we do.”
Thought was given to a promotion for Dan Lawrence, the spare batter on this tour and a part-time off-spinner who could ease the demands on a struggling Joe Root, but Stokes and head coach, Brendon McCullum, felt it would be forcing things.
They have backed Jonny Bairstow, despite a lean tour and only seven balls at the crease last week. Stokes said: “If batters have a tough time over a short period, it will come under scrutiny. But I don’t look at it like that, I look at what Jonny has contributed for a long period of time, since I’ve been captain. He has money in the bank, he’s a quality player.”
India are once again keeping their final selection under wraps until the toss, with Jasprit Bumrah the one player confirmed to miss out for rest. Before Stokes spoke, the hosts deployed batting coach Vikram Rathour for the pre-match press conference. Asked about the surface, Rathour replied: “Every time we play in India, there is a question mark on the pitch. It’s a typical Indian wicket, there are cracks, this wicket always had cracks. It will turn, but how much it will turn and from when we are not sure. But we have enough balance in our team.”
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Tom Hartley, Ollie Robinson, Shoaib Bashir, Jimmy Anderson
India (possible): Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (wk), R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep
