🏏England vs India, 3rd Test Day 5, Lords - Jul10- 14

India tour of England, 2025

🏏England vs India, 3rd Test Lords, London: Jul 10-Jul 14🏏

In every sport, a victory changes the narrative. After Leeds - how are India going to pick 20 wickets, is Shubman Gill the guy to lead India, 7 defeats in their last 9 Test matches and the pressure mounting on Gautam Gambhir. After Edgbaston - Akash Deep is India's answer to their bowling woes, Shubman Gill leads from the front, pressure eases on Gambhir as India level the series and Jasprit Bumrah is back for the Lord's Test. Hello and welcome to the third Test.. It has been an enthralling series so far with both Tests going to day 5. What does Lord's have in store for us?

Somewhere between the heatwave warnings and the carry-your-water-bottles signs, tradition will loosen its collar this week. The MCC has allowed its members to go jacketless in the Pavilion, that's how hot it's expected to get at Lord's.

The second Test of the summer at this historic ground already carries a different weight, not the ceremonial grandeur of last month's WTC Final, but the sharp edge of a contest after two rounds of traded blows.

The series, level, now moves to a ground that isn't. Lord's, with its famous slope, has a way of tilting things, and this feels like the game where momentum could start to lean. England are under watch, while India arrive with the surer footing, at a place where they've won more Tests than anywhere else in this country.

Things seem a lot rosier for the Indian side after the comprehensive win at Edgbaston. The batters have enjoyed the good batting conditions and registered 350+ scores in all four innings.

Their new ball bowlers - Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep - got more movement out of the surface at Edgbaston than their counterparts. The fielding, which was a lacklustre in Leeds, improved as well and that was the reason India squared the series and come into this Test with a lot of momentum.

And with Bumrah back in the XI it would only boost their morale further. But will that be the only change?

England have been under the pump right from the first Test. Some excellent batting on the final day of the Leeds Test gave them the lead but their batters were exposed by Akash Deep who got the ball to nip around. Also, Joe Root not scoring hasn't helped as he's the glue that keeps their modern day approach and traditional batting together.

They would also need some runs from skipper Ben Stokes. The playing XI is already announced with Jofra Archer making a return to Test cricket after 4+ years and it is a like for like replacement with Josh Tongue. How is the pitch going to play? Let's find out..

Pitch report: "There is a bit of grass on it, but it has been cut down a little bit. They want a bit of pace and carry which is why they have left a bit of grass on it. Using the short ball will be key here. The slope is going to play a role, especially with the seamers," reckons Nasser Hussain.

Pitch Update: "Oh and on the pitch itself - the grass that was there even when I left last evening appears to have been shaved off" - pings Kaushik.

"It's interesting to watch Bumrah mark and do a mock run from both ends. Pavilion end might be his, with he slope down working his nip-backer. But expect to see him from Nursery End too where he can get the ball to straighten," observes Kaushik. "And he's just had a small little conversation with Stuart Broad, someone who'll know little nuggets about bowling from the two ends here."- he adds.

Lord's may offer a little more to the bowlers, if visual evidence can be believed. But that balance, between creating opportunity and inviting risk, is one England have to get absolutely right at this delicate stage of the series. What's harder to fix is the Dukes ball itself. They have become a defining feature of the series, going soft barely 30 overs in, and taking bite and carry with it. What follows is often survival mode: deep fields, defensive lines, and a holding pattern until the second new ball arrives.

What's certain is that Lord's will hum louder this time, even through the quieter, holding stretches. This isn't an ICC final with split loyalties, this is England at home, under scrutiny, searching for a quick turnaround. The heat will be on, literally and figuratively, as familiar patterns give way to fresh challenges. Their method hasn't faltered, but the series is evolving, and the side that adapts quickest, on pitch and beyond, may well set the tone for what's to come.

When: England vs India, 3rd Test, July 10-14 2025, 15:30 IST, 11:00 Local

It is toss time..

What to expect: London has just emerged from a heatwave, and though recent days have been pleasant, temperatures are forecast to climb back up to 32 degrees during the Test. After voicing their displeasure with the Edgbaston surface, England will hope for something livelier at Lord's, looking at the tinge of green currently on the pitch on the eve of the match. Recent matches here, including the WTC Final, have followed a similar pattern: tricky first innings conditions followed by progressively better batting as the game wears on.

England have won the toss and have opted to bat

Ben Stokes: We are going to have a bat. Surface there is something here early on generally. It is good, well fought series and we are up for this game. The body is good. Quick turnaround, we are fresh and ready to go. Everyone likes playing at Lord's and you have to enjoy it.

England have won the toss and have opted to bat

Team News:

England

The hosts have bowled a staggering 443 overs in the series so far and given the short turnaround, changes were expected. In comes Archer for Josh Tongue. Stokes confirmed that Carse has pulled up well and will hold on to his spot.

Playing XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Jofra Archer, Shoaib Bashir

India

As has been confirmed already by Gill, Bumrah will return for the Test and although Siraj may be due for a break sometime, he'll be expected to push through while Prasidh Krishna is likely to sit this one out. India might likely to resist the temptation of making another change because they can get a pure batter - Sai Sudharsan - for Washington Sundar if they feel a second spinner is not needed but that would again force them to rejig their batting line-up with Karun Nair having played at No.3 in Birmingham.

Probable XI: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Reddy, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj

Did you know?

- India have won three Tests at Lord's - 1986, 2014 and 2021 - the most by them at a venue in England.

- Chris Woakes has an exceptional all round record at Lord's - a batting average of 42.50 and a bowling average of 12.91 across seven Tests. He was POTM in his only previous appearance against India at the venue, in 2018.

- 3365 runs scored across the first two Tests - the highest aggregate after the first two Tests in a series. The previous highest being 3230 runs in Ashes 1924/25.

What they said:

"This was always going to be a series which was going to have, you know, moments ebb and flow, because of two very good teams going at it against each other. We came out on top on Headingley and yeah, they came out on top of us last week. I don't think we feel like we have the edge over anyone. We respect our opposition whatever period in the series it may be." - Ben Stokes,on the wins split over the first two games

"I think in this series, from what I've seen, the ball is getting de-shaped too much. That has never happened [to this level] before. It's definitely irritating for the players because every ball plays differently. Because when it becomes softer, sometimes it's not doing too much. But as soon as it changes the ball, it's starting to do enough." - Rishabh Pant, on the Dukes ball situation

Shubman Gill: I was confused what to do till this morning. I would have bowled first. There would be something for the bowlers in the first session. Everyone chipped in and that's what the discussion was about. The bowlers are feeling confident, wasn't easy to pick 20 wickets on that (Edgbaston) wicket. I am feeling great, as a batter you expect to be in the middle of the situation and batting. We have one change - Bumrah for Prasidh.

England have won the toss and have opted to bat