England vs India 2018: Top 3 player battles to watch out for
With the T20 and ODI series done and dusted, team India will be looking to avenge their defeat in the ODI series and bounce back strongly in the upcoming five match test series against a formidable English side led by Joe Root. Both the teams have played excellent cricket in recent times and will be looking to continue with their winning momentum. While England start off as favourites to to lift the trophy, their competition is against the Indian side currently on the top of ICC Test Rankings.
Indian batsmen will have their work cut out against the fierce English bowling line up possessing the ability to swing the ball both ways. The Indian team failed to win the series in their last two trips to England, and will be hoping to clinch the series this time around.
Indian skipper Virat Kohli will be hoping to improve his records on English soil, have failed to make a score over 50 in the last test series in England. His batting will play a key role in deciding the series.
Here are some player battles to look out for in the upcoming test series
#3 Joe Root vs Ishant Sharma
Joe Root is considered one of the most prolific batsman of the current era. He has been in rich form lately and has evolved as a great player of spin bowling. His technique of defending good deliveries and punishing the bad ones has worked wonders and helps him achieve the three figure mark more often than not.
India are aware of the threat Root possesses and will be looking to get him out cheaply. Indian pacer Ishant Sharma will have to take up the responsibility of sending Root back to the pavillion. Ishant has been in England a while now playing county cricket for Sussez, and has got used to the conditions offered by English pitches. Moreover, Root has been dismissed to pace bowling quite often in the recent times.
Root has an excellent average of 64.91 against off-spinners but his weakness against pacers was highlighted by Australian bowlers during the Ashes series last year, while the Indian pacer has shown tremendous form in county cricket with best figures of 5/69 during his stint with Sussex.
Ishant vs Root will be an exiting contest to witness throughout the series.