🏏England tour of India 2024: 5th Test: 07 - 11 March 2024 - Day 3🏏

🏏England tour of India 2024: 5th Test: 07 - 11 March 2024 at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala at 9:30 AM IST🏏

Can England's no-consequences approach stop India from gunning for 4-1?

As Stokes himself acknowledged, "3-2 sounds better than 3-1 or 4-1", so another high-octane contest ought to be in prospect.

One way or another, England will be ending their tour of India on a high, as they head to the foothills of the Himalayas for the fifth and final Test in Dharamsala - the first of the Bazball era in which Ben Stokes' men are not in the running for at least a share of the series.

It's been a curiously fallow few days ahead of what, after two days in Ranchi, had looked like being the sharp end of this campaign. With their squad split between two bases in Bengaluru and Chandigarh, England have licked their wounds after their untimely unravelling in the fourth Test, where their tightest grip on any of the contests to date - including astonishing win in Hyderabad - was unpicked finger by finger in India's most stirring display of supremacy yet.

From Akash Deep's first-day fireworks to Dhruv Jurel's twin displays of big-match cojones, via the inevitable onset of India's spin supremacy in the decisive third innings, England's fabled self-belief endured its most relentless examination of the tour. In his post-match remarks, Stokes even conceded that competing on equal terms had been nigh on "impossible" - perhaps the most defeatist sentiment to have passed his lips in his captaincy tenure.

se Camp for the Bazball philosophy, whatever that may entail. In some ways, the circumstances of the fifth Test should suit England's no-consequences approach - a shot to nothing in a match that truly does count for little more than pride, against an India team that might conceivably lack some of its intensity now that their stupendous home record has been preserved for another series.

That said, between the occasion of R Ashwin's 100th Test, and the return to their ranks of the lethal Jasprit Bumrah, whose absence in Ranchi was arguably a major factor in England's first-innings recovery, India will have all the weapons and incentive necessary to gun for a 4-1 series scoreline, the sort of margin witnessed on numerous past England tours, and which the visitors' new approach had been designed to do away with.

As Stokes himself acknowledged, "3-2 sounds better than 3-1 or 4-1", so another high-octane contest ought to be in prospect - notwithstanding the stirrings of a stomach bug within the England camp that caused both Shoaib Bashir and Ollie Robinson to be quarantined in their hotel rather than risk them mingling with the rest of the team during their final practice session.

No such concerns for India, who have grown into this series with poise and purpose, making light of the loss of Virat Kohli and latterly KL Rahul to forge an enviable spirit, studded with stars who look ready to carry the side into the coming years. The occasion of Ashwin's 100th Test serves as a reminder of the enduring class that has underpinned their challenge, while Rohit Sharma's authority as captain has arguably grown in the absence of his senior colleagues, not least in his gentle handling of the one anomaly in India's otherwise settled line-up, Rajat Patidar.

Here’s how the weather will be in Dharamshala across five days

All five days in Dharamshala will be extremely chilly. Rain can play a spoilsport on Day 1 but the weather is expected to improve as the game progresses. There will be more sunlight on Day 3 and 4, while it will be cloudy on Day 5. Other than that, bad light can spoil the game on most of the days. The floodlights are likely to be used after Tea, which can be a bit problematic for the players in the final Test of the series.

Meanwhile, bowling first will be ideal as the conditions improve massively on the following days. The pacers will enjoy bowling as the conditions will hugely favour them.

Outfield and pitch watch:

In February last year, the India-Australia Test scheduled to be played in a renovated HPCA stadium in Dharamsala was moved out of the venue due to inclement weather that meant the grass cover on the outfield was not well grown.The outfield then came under heavy criticism during last year's World Cup, when brown, muddy patches all around made it dangerous for fielding. England in particular were peeved by the state of it and made it known that it wasn't conducive to dive around on. Dharamsala, on that front, has recovered well. The outfield is now lush and even, a fact alluded to by Jonny Bairstow, when he said: "I think they've done a brilliant job with the field. If you look back at the field from the World Cup, the transition made to produce something like that has been amazing, along with the weather."

As for the pitch, it wears a wheatish, and barren look. This is the same surface on which the Ranji Trophy fixture between Himachal Pradesh and Delhi was played from February 9 to 11. That game had both teams scoring at a fair clip, and the pacers accounted for 34 of the 36 wickets to fall.

When: India vs England, 5th Test, March 7-11, 09:30 AM IST

Where: Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala

What to expect: Some fickle weather. There have been unseasonal rains until four days away from the start of the game, and there was a forecast for snowfall on the morning of Day 1. That has now cleared up though. As it stands, there could be clear and cloudy days with scattered showers on Day 5.

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Team News:

India

Rajat Patidar got a lot of batting in the nets on Tuesday and Wednesday, and a lot of backing from Rohit Sharma in the press conference on the eve of the game. He should hold on to his spot.

Kuldeep Yadav, meanwhile, could be the one to make way for the returning Jasprit Bumrah if India believe the chilly weather will persist. "If we feel the weather is going to be like this, there's a good chance," Rohit said when asked about the possibility of picking three quicks.

Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj

England

England have stuck to their two pace-two spin combination, but have brought in Mark Wood for Ollie Robinson. Stokes reckoned having a fresh Mark Wood for a venue like this will be advantageous while also revealing that Ollie Robinson and Shoaib Bashir are down with an upset stomach.

Confirmed XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, James Anderson, Mark Wood

Did you know:

- James Anderson is two away from 700 Test wickets

- At 37 years, 172 days, R Ashwin will be the oldest Indian cricketer to play his 100th Test

- Yashasvi Jaiswal is 29 away from completing 1000 Test runs. If he gets there in this Test, he'll be the second fastest Indian in terms of innings taken after Vinod Kambli (14 inns) and the fastest Indian in terms of matches played (9).

What they said:

"700 wickets is phenomenal as a seam bowler. He has had an amazing career up to date and I just can't see him stopping. I've played with Jimmy for a long, long time and I have never seen him look as physically fit as he does right now. Being 41 and still showing the hunger to get better every day is testament to his commitment." - Ben Stokes on James Anderson.

"It's a big milestone [the 100th Test]. R Ashwin is a big match-winner for us. Whatever he has done for the team in all these years, any [amount of] praise is less." - Rohit Sharma on his lead spinner.

In the spotlight: Rajat Patidar and Jonny Bairstow

Is this the last-chance saloon for the most precarious selection in India's ranks? Previous regimes might have seen enough of Rajat Patidar already, after six innings of increasingly diminishing returns - 32 runs in a passable maiden knock in Visakhapatnam, then 31 all told in the remainder, including a brace of second-innings ducks in Rajkot and Ranchi. His arrival at the crease has consistently offered England hope of exerting a hold on India's innings. And yet, it wasn't so long ago that Patidar was looking a class apart for India A against a strong England Lions XI, including with an astonishing 151 out of 227 in their unofficial Test in Ahmedabad, having rescued his team from a scoreline of 50 for 6. On that evidence, it's a case of big-match nerves rather than any lack of Test class that has held him back so far, but he'll need to reward the management's faith soon.

For the second time this winter, Jonny Bairstow is due to bring up a century in Dharamsala, though not of the strictly batting variety. As with his 100th ODI cap during the World Cup, Bairstow's Test caps milestone will be a source of immense pride for one of the more emotionally-driven players of recent vintage, but it comes also with the nagging sense that he's nearing the end of his England journey. For all the unfathomable determination he has shown to get back to fitness after his horrific leg injury in September 2022, Bairstow's returns on this trip have been awkwardly unfulfilled - five scores between 25 and 38, and an overall average of 21.25 in eight innings, speak of a player whose fires still burn bright but whose physicality is letting him down. And while it's reductive to suggest that he always saves his best for when the doubters are lined up against him, it's a seductive notion too. With Harry Brook waiting in the wings for the English summer, can Bairstow find one last burst of furious brilliance to ensure his 100th Test won't be his last? The beauty of his career is that you wouldn't ever bet against it.

Stats and trivia: Milestones galore in prospect

• Both R Ashwin and Jonny Bairstow are in line for their 100th Test appearances. Ashwin, who passed 500 Test wickets earlier in the series, is set to be the 14th Indian caps centurion, and Bairstow the 17th for England.
• Bairstow needs 26 runs to reach 6,000 in Tests, a mark also reached by 16 previous England players.
• Yashasvi Jaiswal is on course to set a new record for most runs by an Indian batter in a series against England. He begins the match on 655, level with Virat Kohli's tally from the 2016-17 campaign.
• James Anderson is two wickets away from 700 Test wickets. Only Muthiah Muralidaran (800) and Shane Warne (708) have taken more.
• Stokes remains three short of 200 Test wickets, and on the cusp of being only the third allrounder after Garry Sobers and Jacques Kallis to complete the double of 6000 runs and 200 wickets. Though he has not bowled in any of his previous seven Test appearances, he is close to a return after knee surgery.
• Ravindra Jadeja is eight wickets away from becoming the seventh Indian to reach 300 Test wickets.

Thanks for the tag.

Last test match for now. Maybe the next one is after IPL.