India vs England: One player from each team who can make a serious impact on the series
England tour of India is set to begin on February 5 in Chennai at MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Both teams are coming into the series on the back of overseas series wins, therefore confidence will be high in both camps. India humbled Australia 2-1 in their own backyard whereas England clean-swept Sri Lanka 2-0 in Lanka.
Ahead of the India-England series, we look at one player from each team who can make a serious impact through the course of the series.
India - Rishabh Pant
Rishabh Pant had a successful Australia tour. With 274 runs in 5 innings, he was India’s highest run-getter in the series.
Pant helped India draw the match at Sydney and his innings of 89* allowed India to chase down a mammoth target in Brisbane.
However, Pant was not part of the starting playing XI in Adelaide despite having scored a quick-fire century in the practice game (just a few days before the start of the series). Experts believed that India had preferred Wriddhiman Saha over Pant due to Saha’s better wicket-keeping ability.
Similarly, Pant was not part of the playing XI when South Africa and Bangladesh visited India in 2019. In a post-series interview to Sony Ten, coach Ravi Shashtri also stated how Pant has time and again received flak for his keeping.
This time after his heroics in Australia, Pant is set to be part of the playing XI in Chennai. Pundits and fans will keep a close eye on Pant's performances in subcontinent conditions.
England - James Anderson
England veteran fast-bowler James Anderson is one of cricket’s modern greats. Time and again Anderson has destroyed the opposition’s batting line-up single-handedly. With 606 wickets in his bank, Anderson is arguably the best fast-bowler that England has ever produced.
At 38 years of age, this may well be the last time he is touring India and he will therefore be very keen to make an impact and help England on Indian shores.
He was the main reason behind England’s series win in India in 2012. However, in 2016, he had a lean tour. This time, he is coming into the 4-match test series in a rich vein of form – only in his last appearance, he picked up 6/40 against Sri Lanka that set up the match for England.
England has got a good combination of spinners. Jofra Archer, with his pace, bounce, and reverse swing will further challenge the Indian batting line-up. But India will have to keep an eye on an aged but skillful Anderson, whose nagging line and length are tough to counter.