England vs India 2018: 5 Things to Watch out for in the final Test
At Ageas Bowl, England not only won the Test match but also sealed the series. They have taken an unassailable lead of 3-1 ahead of the 5th Test match at Oval. India had their moments in the last game but moments don’t win you matches or series, especially in foreign conditions. Except for Ashwin, India’s bowlers were once again brilliant as they took the 20 wickets.
Cheteshwar Pujara played an absolute blinder in the first innings to score his first hundred in England. But India’s batting line-up collapsed once again after the fall of the wicket of Virat Kohli in the 2nd innings.
Moeen Ali, who was making a comeback to the Test team after a few months was absolutely brilliant with the ball.
He took 9 wickets and scored some vital runs in the first innings as well. India can be proud of the fact that they at least competed and weren’t outplayed.
But on the other hand, the No.1 Test team would be disappointed with the fact that they couldn’t cross the line. As Virat said, the scoreline doesn’t suggest how close the series has been.
The series has already been decided but there are a few things to watch out for in the fifth Test. So, let’s have a look at five such things.
#5 Ravindra Jadeja – Will he get a chance?
Ravindra Jadeja has been traveling with the Indian team since the South Africa tour but still, he hasn’t got a single game in the last seven overseas Test Matches.
He is currently ranked at No.3 in the ICC Test Bowler and Test All-Rounders rankings. He is one of the best bowlers when it comes to bowling accurately. He has been brilliant for India in the Indian conditions and reasonably good in overseas conditions whenever he has got a chance.
It was unfortunate that he wasn’t picked before Kuldeep Yadav. Ashwin’s below-par performance in Southampton might just work in the favor of Jadeja.
Ashwin hasn’t contributed much with the bat as well and Jadeja would definitely be more helpful in the field. It will be interesting to see if India go in with a left-arm spinner over an off-spinner for the fifth Test.