IND vs ENG – England name their playing XI, star name omitted

England Cricket Team has named its playing XI for the first Test in Hyderabad starting on Thursday. Tom Hartley is set to play his first Test with Rehan Ahmed and Jack Leach the other spinners.

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James Anderson isn’t part of the XI as Mark Wood will be the sole pace bowler for England. The opening batters are Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett with Ollie Pope set to bat number three. 

Ben Foakes has been named the wicketkeeper of the side with Jonny Bairstow set to play as a batter. Meanwhile, India are yet to name their XI ahead of the first game. Rajat Patidar has been drafted as Virat Kohli’s replacement for the first two Tests.

Ben Stokes and England left stunned over Shoaib Bashir Visa issue – 

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One of the biggest talking points ahead of the India vs England series is the Shoaib Bashir visa issue. The young spinner has gone back home after his Visa application was denied. This has left Ben Stokes and the rest of England stunned and the English skipper spoke about it to the media. 

While speaking to ESPN CRICINFO, Stokes revealed “We announced that squad in mid-December, and now Bash finds himself without a visa to get here. I am more frustrated for him. I didn’t want this type of situation to be his first experience of what it is like to be in the England Test team, I feel for him”

Even Rohit Sharma was asked by the media to comment on the issues. India’s skipper said “I feel for Shoaib Unfortunately, I don’t sit in the visa office to give you more details, but I hope he gets it quickly and enjoys our country”

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James Anderson has been dropped for the first test match in what is a surprising move. The veteran pacer is just 10 wickets shy of 700 Test wickets and has a good record in India. Mark Wood will be sharing the new ball duties with the three spinners named in the playing XI. 

Interestingly, England are the last side to win a Test series in India. Alastair Cook and his side beat India with a 2-1 margin when they toured the country in 2012-13. Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow are the only two members from that side who are in the current squad. 

England XI for First Test in Hyderabad –

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (Captain), Ben Foakes (WK), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach, and Mark Wood.