3 England players India can target in the first Test
England's side for the first Test against India was announced on Thursday. The selectors sprung in a few surprises by recalling the spin duo of Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid. While Moeen Ali has been out of the Test side since March, Rashid hasn't played any form of red-ball cricket for a considerable amount of time.
England squad for first Test: Joe Root (captain), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Stuart Broad, Jos Buttler, Alastair Cook, Sam Curran, Keaton Jennings, Dawid Malan, Jamie Porter, Adil Rashid, Ben Stokes
Keeping in mind their poor run of form in Tests, the series against India will be crucial for the English side. After the 4-0 Ashes drubbing, England lost the Two match series 1-0 against New Zealand where they were dismissed for 58 in an innings. Then against Pakistan they drew the series 1-1 playing at home.
The England team still hasn't been able to find their strongest playing XI and India will definitely look to exploit this weakness. There are some players who are still finding their feet in Test cricket, while some are making a comeback to the Test side. All these players will be under tremendous amount of pressure and the Indian team can surely target them. We will look at 3 such England players who can be targeted in the first Test.
#3 Keaton Jennings
Keaton Jennings made a comeback to the England side replacing Mark Stoneman in the second Test against Pakistan. Even though the left-handed opener did not set the stage on fire, he made a steady 29 in the first innings and gave a solid start to his team. The selectors have shown faith in Jennings' ability and have selected him for the first Test against India.
However, Jennings has been found susceptible to genuine swing and has been dismissed driving on the off-side a lot of times. Also, he hasn't played quality spin bowling a lot in his career. The Indian team will try to get Jennings out early and put pressure on England's strong middle order.