England announce 16-man squad with 3 uncapped bowlers for highly-anticipated India tour, check details here

Ben Stokes, who was rumored to miss the Test, is captaining the side but doubts still arise on his ability to bowl.

England announce 16-man squad with 3 uncapped bowlers for highly-anticipated India tour, check details here

England Cricket Team drew the 2022 Ashes 2-2 (Image via ESPN)

England will tour India in the month of January to play a 5-match Test series. The last time they toured India was in early 2021, where they lost the series 2-1. Ben Stokes returns to lead the English team after undergoing a knee surgery, while 3 uncapped players get called up. 

Zak Crawely and Ben Duckett have returned as openers and Ollie Pope returns to the Test side after being injured in the Ashes. Jimmy Anderson, Mark Wood and Ollie Robinson are the only capped pacers, while Gus Atkinson gets called up. It is not yet confirmed if Stokes will be bowling after his knee surgery. 

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Joe Root and Harry Brook are the only middle order batters in the team, while Ben Foakes and Jonny Bairstow are the keepers selected. Jack Leach, who missed out on the Ashes, returns alongside young Rehan Ahmed as well. Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir are the back up spinners. 

  • Batters: Joe Root, Harry Brook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope
  • Bowlers: Rehan Ahmed, James Anderson, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach, Mark Wood, Ollie Robinson
  • All-rounders: Ben Stokes (c)
  • Wicket-keepers: Jonny Bairstow, Ben Foakes

Are England prepared for the Indian pitches? 

Since the inauguration of the WTC, where each Test match is now important for points, India have made pitches where everyone struggles, including Indian batters. The biggest Test for Ben Stokes and Co. is tackling the spin trio of Axar Patel, R. Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. In the previous series when India played, the English batters struggled to play spin. Prime example being the 3rd Test match of the series, where both teams struggled to cross 150 runs. Joe Root even got a five wicket haul!

Indian Cricket Team
Indian Cricket Team beat England 3-1 the last time they played in India (Image via ESPN)

With the team shifting to Bazball, Brendon McCullum will see if his team can continue this style of cricket on such pitches. It has worked in familiar conditions such as England and New Zealand or on the flat surfaces of Pakistan, but now they will go to a country where there is purchase for bowlers from day 1. 

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