Ben Stokes to miss 5th Test against India, England make 4 changes to playing XI

[AuxiliA]

13 minutes ago, putrevus said:

You cannot do that if deck is seaming deck.Oval always has extra bounce.It is not like India has three front line fast bowlers.They need to have cushion too.

 

The way things look, Eng will give a flat batting pitch to secure a draw and series win. 

 

If the pitch is flat then it's a no brainer to go with Kuldeep as he would do better than the likes of Prasidh, Shardul and Kamboj. 

 

Forget cushion for this test, we need a bowling attack which can take 20 wkts and force a result.

[coffee_rules]

Recall Bumrah and go for the jugular

[putrevus]

1 minute ago, AuxiliA said:

 

The way things look, Eng will give a flat batting pitch to secure a draw and series win. 

 

If the pitch is flat then it's a no brainer to go with Kuldeep as he would do better than the likes of Prasidh, Shardul and Kamboj. 

 

Forget cushion for this test, we need a bowling attack which can take 20 wkts and force a result.

If the pitch is flat you are right. If it has some grass then it will be tricky.

[Gollum]

One last push by Bumrah here can enrich his legacy, pitch will aid quicks. Does he want to risk it? After this he can rest till December when we play tests vs RSA. No IPL nonsense as well in between.

[cowboysfan]

1 hour ago, putrevus said:

They have dropped their only spinner and India is planning to play 3 spinners??

yeah this is beyond dumb,i expect a damp pitch to aid their trundlers.

[neel roy]

 stokes _i dont want to risk my front line bowlers_

Archer Carse Stoke Dawson

4 bowlers ko drop kiya.. karwata na last hour me bowling..

[neel roy]

18 minutes ago, Gollum said:

One last push by Bumrah here can enrich his legacy, pitch will aid quicks. Does he want to risk it? After this he can rest till December when we play tests vs RSA. No IPL nonsense as well in between.

Bashia cup in sep

[rkt.india]

1 hour ago, deathmonger said:

Only four bowlers without a spinner? 

Behell is the spinner 

[rkt.india]

22 minutes ago, Gollum said:

One last push by Bumrah here can enrich his legacy, pitch will aid quicks. Does he want to risk it? After this he can rest till December when we play tests vs RSA. No IPL nonsense as well in between.

Bumrah is injured, calf injury. He was struggling to bowl 135+ even in last test. Didn't bowl any ball over 140. A trundler bumrah is as useful as Shardul or Kamboj.

[neel roy]

1 hour ago, G_B_ said:

Will be a seaming deck

 

India need an extra batter imo

 

Arshdeep will be useful with the new ball.

Arshdeep not fit. Boris johnson majumder confirmed

[lemsip]

18 minutes ago, cowboysfan said:

yeah this is beyond dumb,i expect a damp pitch to aid their trundlers.

England are doing it not because of the pitch but because injuries have forced their hand. They need to replace Stokes both as a bowler and a batsman. The only way they can attempt it given Archer and Carse are out too, is to put Bethell in and make up the spinner's overs between him and Root. They are also forced to pay a 36 year old Woakes for his 5th test in a row.

So they have Tongue, Atkinson, Woakes and Overton as their attack with Bethell and Root sharing the spinner's role.

 

[BacktoCricaddict]

11 minutes ago, rkt.india said:

calf injury

If this is true, it's best to sit the guy long-term. Calf injuries are ticking time bombs for a future achilles tear, if they are ignored. 

 

https://beyondtheabstract.substack.com/p/the-pattern-we-refuse-to-see

Quote

When something breaks, people often start looking for something — or someone — to blame. The surface. The shoes. The trainer. The schedule. But the truth is that athletes break down. Even the best ones. Especially when they push through early warning signs at the highest levels of intensity.

 

Prior injury remains one of the biggest predictors of future injury. Pushing through pain may feel heroic — an act of loyalty to the fans and teammates. Sometimes, it works out. Other times, it ends exactly like this.

 

Not every injury is bad luck. Not every fix is a new rule. Sometimes the body gives a warning. And sometimes we look away.

 

[putrevus]

So why have they not called up Harshit, why was he sent home.Is BCCI lacking funds to pay for one extra player.

 

This is beyond stupid. They are playing five test series in such a short span and they needed to have extra fast bowlers but they selected extra spinners and fake allrounders.

 

They called up Kamboj instead of Harshit who can develop into a fast bowler.If this bozo Kamboj plays in Oval, they will feast of his 120 k thunderbolts.

 

If Arshdeep is injured? who are three fast bowlers going to be?

Edited July 30, 2025 by putrevus

[The Realist]

4 minutes ago, neel roy said:

Arshdeep not fit. Boris johnson majumder confirmed

 

He's been sitting on the bench all series, how is he unfit?

 

Along with Easwaran is a glorified tourist on tour. 

[neel roy]

Just now, The Realist said:

 

He's been sitting on the bench all series, how is he unfit?

 

Along with Easwaran is a glorified tourist on tour. 

He had 7 stitches in his webbing

[BacktoCricaddict]

2 minutes ago, putrevus said:

So why have they not called up Harshit, why was he sent home.Is BCCI lacking funds to pay for one extra player.

 

This is beyond stupid. They are playing five test series in such a short span and they needed to have extra fast bowlers but they selected extra spinners and fake allrounders.

 

They called up Kamboj instead of Harshit who can develop into a fast bowler.If this bozo Kamboj plays in Oval, they will feast of his 120 k thunderbolts.

The worst decisions in the history of team selections. 

[Nikhil_cric]

1 hour ago, vvvslaxman said:

 

Never understand why they left out Tongue. May be he is not that good a batsman. They prefer bowlers who can bat a bit. All these guys can do.

Workload. Pace was going down 

[putrevus]

7 minutes ago, BacktoCricaddict said:

The worst decisions in the history of team selections. 

I cannot fathom, they went to tour of five tests with just four bowlers.Bumrah was supposed to play only three tests. Now you are asking Siraj to play all five tests.

 

How can selectors select Bumrah, Siraj, Prasidh and Akashdeep.Just four bowlers and ask the team to play five test series.

 

If Arshdeep is injured why is he still with the team and why have they not called for replacement. 

Edited July 30, 2025 by putrevus

[BacktoCricaddict]

1 minute ago, putrevus said:

I cannot fathom, they went to tour of five tests with just four bowlers.Bumrah was supposed to play only three tests. Now you are asking Siraj to play all five tests.

 

How can selectors select Bumrah, Siraj, Prasidh and Akashdeep.Just four bowlers and ask the team to play five test series.

 

If Arshdeep is injured why is he still with the team and why have they not called for replacement. 

Is R P Singh available? Maybe he is vacationing in Royal Tunbridge Wells.

[Nikhil_cric]

I thought Arshdeep was fit for selection?