England vs India 2018, Fifth Test: Preview
England won the fourth Test by 60 runs at Southampton to seal the series and India will now look for a consolation win in the final fixture of England's Tour from Friday, September 7 at the Kennington Oval in London.
In the longest format, both teams have faced each other on 12 occasions at Kennington Oval with the hosts leading the scoreline 4-1 and seven of those matches have ended in draws. In their most recent clash at this ground in 2014, the hosts ended up winning quite comfortably by an innings and 244 runs.
India
The visitors squandered a very good opportunity to level the series at Southampton after being set a target of 245 but their batting woes came to haunt them again as the entire team folded up for just 184, conceding a 60-run win to England and hence the series. Their batsmen, with the exception of Virat Kohli, have found it difficult to survive in these conditions against a relentless English bowling attack.
Batting: Indian skipper is leading the series' runs charts with 544 runs which include two centuries and three half-centuries, which makes him undoubtedly India's key man when it comes to batting. While Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane have had a couple of good hits each and both provided good support to Kohli at Southampton with contributions of 132* and 51 respectively and it will be crucial that they continue to bat well. Except them, none of the batsmen have shown the temperament to face the lethal English attack. Though Shikhar Dhawan has got starts in this series, he has not been able to convert them into something substantial.
Bowling: Indian bowling department has been quite impressive throughout the series and they will once again bank on their pacers Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah to get some crucial wickets. Ishant Sharma undoubtedly has been the most impressive bowler for the visitors in this series with 15 wickets and he will be backed by his team to provide the early breakthroughs.
Expected Playing XI: Virat Kohli (C), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravichandran Ashwin or Ravindra Jadeja, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw and Cheteshwar Pujara.
England
After suffering a 203-run thrashing to India in the fourth Test at Nottingham. The hosts staged a dramatic comeback at Southampton to secure the five-match series. Meanwhile, Alastair Cook has announced his retirement and he is set to hang up his boots after this Test.
Batting: Alastair Cook is among the leading run-getters for the hosts at this ground in Tests and he will be eager to play a big knock in his final Test appearance. Jos Buttler has scored the most runs for his side in this series and team's middle order seems even more reliant on Buttler. While Skipper Joe Root has a century and two fifties in five matches at the Oval and the skipper is expected to continue his good run.
Bowling: James Anderson and Stuart Broad, two of England's best pace bowlers over the years, have lived up to their expectations in this series. While Anderson is leading the wickets charts with 19 wickets, Broad is not too far behind with 14 wickets to his name. Apart from these two, Moeen Ali who finished with a match-haul of 9 wickets last time could pose a big threat to the Indian batsmen.
Expected Playing XI: Joe Root (C), Jonny Bairstow, Chris Woakes, Jos Buttler, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Alastair Cook and Keaton Jennings.