Ahead of the fifth Test match against England, Team India has geared up and is eager to secure a win in the final contest of the series, and Gautam Gambhir has been all charged up. While he was earlier seen getting involved in a heated verbal exchange with the pitch curator Lee Fortis ahead of the fifth Test match, he also reminded the team about an important aspect of the team that will be missed in the current scenario.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) posted a video on its official social media handle, in which head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen telling the huddle that, “we`re without our three most experienced players”. The players that the former opening batsman mentioned refer to none other than Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Ravichandran Ashwin. Taking to X:
4 Tests ✅
Time for One Final Push in the series finale 👍
𝙇𝙚𝙩`𝙨 𝙂𝙊! 👏👏#TeamIndia | #ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/pj8a7AXb8N
— BCCI (@BCCI) July 31, 2025
Ahead of the series, Team India`s think tank appointed Shubman Gill as their new skipper after Rohit`s retirement, and he has risen to the occasion to not only showcase his leadership skills but also consistently performing with the bat.
Currently, the side has been delivering exceptional performances in the series, but are struggling to go par the line to win the matches. They are trailing by 1-2 against England.
Additionally, lead pacer Jasprit Bumrah`s availability will be a major concern for India. The pacer was advised not to play in the consecutive Test matches, considering his workload management.
His presence in the fifth Test would be ideal for the side to draw the series.
A win at The Oval, would help them to draw the series, and save Gill`s opening record as a Test captain.
Heading into the fifth Test, India will look to make the most out of the opportunities, as England will line up without the likes of its lead pacer Jofra Archer and skipper Ben Stokes.
Stokes was ruled out of the match, as he sustained an injury in his right shoulder.
Ind vs Eng 5th Test: Full Squads
India Squad: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Dhruv Jurel(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Anshul Kamboj, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Karun Nair, Kuldeep Yadav, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, N Jagadeesan, Arshdeep Singh, Akash Deep.
England`s Playing XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue.