The England cricket board announced the men's team for the upcoming fifth and final Test against India on Wednesday with just one change in their playing XI. India have already the clinched the 5-match series after winning the previous Test.
Fast bowler Mark Wood is back in the team in place of all-rounder Ollie Robinson, who went wicketless in the Ranchi Test and scored 58 runs in England's first innings total.
Wood's ordinary returns in the series
Wood has played the first and fourth Tests on this tour and picked 4 wickets so far. He went wicketless in the series opener in Hyderabad after which James Anderson was brought into the playing XI.
The 34-year-old made a strong comeback in Ranchi where he picked all 4 of his wickets in India's first innings but couldn't add to his tally in the second.
Landmark Test for out-of-form Bairstow
Meanwhile, veteran cricketer Jonny Bairstow retains his place in the playing XI despite having a forgetful series with the bat.
The 34-year-old from Yorkshire has scored just 170 runs from 4 matches at 21.25 with 38 being his highest score. He will be playing his 100th Test for England in Dharamsala.
England need to bounce back
The Three Lions are languishing in 8th position on the WTC points table with just 3 wins from 9 Tests in the 2023-2025 cycle. The series defeat against India is England's first in the Bazball era under captain Ben Stokes and coach Brendon McCullum.
The final Test will be played at the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association stadium from March 7 (Thursday). Match starts at 9.30 am IST.
England Playing XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (C), Ben Foakes, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson, Shoaib Bashir.
