The England cricket team announced its 14-player squad for the initial Test against India, starting on Friday, June 20. A few surprises might have emerged in the lineup were it not for Gus Atkinson, the star of 2024, who has been ruled out due to injury. Jamie Overton from CSK will be taking that position as the side aims to exploit the inexperience in the Indian 5-match Test series. Ben Stokes is there to lead an otherwise unchanged team that has recently beaten Zimbabwe.
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Overton last played a Test during his debut against New Zealand in 2022. England are definitely going to miss Atkinson, who is nursing a hamstring injury.
The likes of Jacob Bethell, Chris Woakes, and Brydon Carse are back in the squad after not featuring against Zimbabwe, with Woakes known to boast a fine record against India that could prove crucial for their bowling. Carse is a good bowler, who controls his spells well, and could prove dangerous at the start against the Indian batsmen.
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England will feature their main batting lineup of Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ollie Pope, and Ben Duckett as they prepare to go up against India. Their batting will hold a little bit more emphasis, with India probably looking to take advantage of England’s aggressive playing style. And the very first Test shall be onward at Headingley, Leeds, a ground usually favorable to the home players.
England squad for 1st Test
Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wk), Ben Stokes (capt), Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes.
