England Elects to Bat First Against India in Opening Test Match

In the opening Test match of the five-match series between India and England, England skipper Ben Stokes won the toss and chose to bat first in Hyderabad.

England’s innings got off to a rocky start as they lost three wickets for just five runs, leaving them at 60-3 after 15.1 overs.

To strengthen their spin attack, England introduced left-arm spinner Tom Hartley, who received his first Test cap. Alongside Hartley, the team also included Joe Root, a veteran batsman who also bowls. The only fast bowler in the team, Mark Wood, was described by Stokes as an “X-factor” on a pitch that is expected to assist the spinners.

India, who have remained undefeated at home in Test series since 2012, fielded three spinners and two seamers. Axar Patel, a left-arm spinner, was preferred over Kuldeep Yadav‘s left-arm wrist spin, which captain Rohit Sharma admitted was a tough decision. Additionally, uncapped batsman Rajat Patidar joined the squad as a replacement for the absent Virat Kohli, who withdrew from the first two Tests due to personal reasons.

Although not part of the playing XI for the first Test, England spinner Shoaib Bashir has received his visa for India and will join the touring team later this week.

The match officials for the opening Test are umpires Chris Gaffaney and Paul Reiffel, TV umpire Marais Erasmus, and match referee Richie Richardson.