India vs England, IND vs ENG, Today Match Prediction 25 January 2024

IND vs ENG Match Prediction & Analysis

An away test series victory in India is widely considered the final frontier in cricket. The Indian team in subcontinent conditions has proved to be a stiff challenge to overcome even for world-beating teams from Australia (early 2000’s) and South Africa (early 2010’s). And it still remains insurmountable.

Over the last 15 years, the Indian team played 65 test matches at home and ended up losing just 6 of those. Team England has troubled India the most with 3 wins, 2 of which came during their successful test series victory on their 2012-13 tour to India. England are the last team to have won a test series against India in India. And they’ll hope their investment in a full-stakes, high risk, fearless brand of cricket that they call Bazball will pay dividends on this Indian tour, as much as it did when they clinched a hard fought away series victory in Pakistan and New Zealand.

The first fixture of a long, gruelling 5-match series gets underway at Hyderabad on the 25th of January, and it’s going to be exhilarating.

RECENT PERFORMANCE

IND

W L W L

RSA

55/10 in 23.2 2.36

SA vs IND 2023

India won by 7 wkts 03 Jan 2024

IND

80/3 in 12.0 6.67

RSA

408/10 in 108.4 3.75

SA vs IND 2023

South Africa beat India by 32 runs 26 Dec 2023

IND

0/0 in 0.0 0

WI

150/10 in 64.3 2.33

WI vs IND

India won by an innings and 141 runs

12 Jul 2023

IND

130/10 in 50.3 2.57

AUS

469/10 in 121.3 3.86

ICCWTCF 2023

Australia won by 209 runs

07 Jun 2023

IND

270/8 in 84.3 3.2

ENG

W W L L W

ENG

283/10 in 54.4 5.18

The Ashes 2023

England won by 49 runs

27 Jul 2023

AUS

395/10 in 81.5 4.83

ENG

237/10 in 52.3 4.51

The Ashes 2023

England won by 3 wickets

06 Jul 2023

AUS

254/7 in 50.0 5.08

ENG

325/10 in 76.2 4.26

The Ashes 2023

Australia won by 43 runs

28 Jun 2023

AUS

327/10 in 81.3 4.01

ENG

393/8 in 78.0 5.04

The Ashes 2023

Australia won by 2 wkts

16 Jun 2023

AUS

273/10 in 66.2 4.12

ENG

524/4 in 82.4 6.34

ENG vs IRE

England won by 10 wickets

01 Jun 2023

IRE

12/0 in 0.4 18

HEAD TO HEAD

TEAMS PREVIEW

India Preview

India finally get back to playing a home test after 10 months. Several players have debuted after that series and a few have been dropped. India’s desire to blood young talent resulted in Yashasvi Jaiswal making his debut to open the inning, Shreyas Iyer being given the long rope in the middle order, and Mukesh Kumar being brought into the pace attack.

Cheteshwar Pujara’s absence has created a gaping hole in the middle order, but KL Rahul and Virat Kohli did well in South Africa to plug that reasonably well. India will be without Kohli for the first two tests, who has withdrawn for personal reasons, but this shouldn’t be a cause for concern with Axar Patel coming in at Number 9 and Jasprit Bumrah at 10. India’s test dominance at home has more to do with bowling than batting, and the spinners need to be given their due credit for that.

Ravichandran Ashwin, who’s in touching distance from a career milestone of 500 test wickets, and Ravindra Jadeja have been a lethal combination for visiting batsmen, and they’ll be eager on starting the test series with a bang. Axar Patel bamboozled England picking up 27 wickets in three matches in his debut test series in 2021, but couldn’t have a similar impact with the ball against the Australians last year. However, he made some crucial late-order knocks (84 and 74) that proved to be the difference between a win and a loss in Nagpur and Delhi tests last year. 

Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj’s pace partnership has been phenomenal in home conditions too.

India Predicted Playing XI:

Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(C), Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Dhruv Jurel(wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah.

India Actual Playing XI:

Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Lokesh Rahul, KS Bharat, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah

England Preview

Facing Indian spinners on rank turners is unnerving, but Team England know a way out. Bazball. After their series victory in India in 2012/13, England couldn’t quite defeat India more than once, with their solitary win coming during their 2021 Covid tour. 

One win in 9 matches makes poor reading, but the Englishmen will be raring to have a go at team India with their brand-new weapon. After successfully Bazballing their way to victories in Pakistan and New Zealand, and to averting a series loss to Australia after being down 0-2 in a 5-match series, England are unfazed by the challenge that awaits them in India. Nobody knows how their batting unit will be able to execute their Bazball skills on dry, low and slow Indian wickets, but they’ve got a solid, settled top and middle order. Harry Brook withdrawing from the tour has clearly sent some last-minute jitters into the camp, but they have called Dan Lawrence for cover. This unforeseen situation, also, has opened up the strange possibility of having a free-flowing stroke-maker Johnny Bairstow and a crafty wicket keeper Ben Foakes in the same XI. 

Jack Leach will lead the three-pronged spin attack, which includes up-and-coming leggie Rehan Ahmed and left arm off spinner Tom Hartley. Joe Root with his tweakers turning away from the left hand batsmen will be invaluable, too.  James Anderson, for the first time, will be without long-time ally Stuart Broad who hung his boots at the end of the Ashes. Also part of the pace battery are Durham quick Mark Wood, who has the pace to unsettle and run through the Indian batsmen if used in short bursts, and, Ollie Robinson, the skilful swing bowler who can move it with the new and old ball.

England Predicted Playing XI:

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Johnny Bairstow, Ben Stokes(C), Ben Foakes (wk), Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Rehan Ahmed and Jack Leach.

England Actual Playing XI:

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Rehan Ahmed, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Foakes, Ollie Pope, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach, Mark Wood

PITCH AND WEATHER CONDITIONS

Weather Conditions

The pitch here is nice and easy for run making in the first two days, but gets more and more difficult to score on as the wicket crumbles and the cracks start to appear bringing Indian spinners into the equation. The weather conditions are expected to hold good for all five days, so rain interruption should be the least of the tourists worries.

IND vs ENG Pitch Report

The match will be played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad. India have won four out of their five games here, and drew one vs New Zealand a decade ago. Two of those four wins ended in innings victories.

Toss: To Bowl

India wouldn’t really mind batting fourth at home, given the matches don’t last five days these days. But for England to bat last and win the contest, it is going to be an uphill struggle.