England vs India Test Series 2025: Three matches of the current five-match Test series Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy have been played between India and England. After a spectacular 22-run win at Lord’s, the host team has taken a 2-1 lead. Now it has become necessary for the Indian team to make a comeback in the series from here but the road ahead is not going to be easy for the team. The next Test will be played at Old Trafford in Manchester. India has never won a Test there. India has been waiting for a Test win here for 89 years.
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Now it is time to end Manchester’s reign…
🚨 BREAKING 🚨
— Sportskeeda (@Sportskeeda) July 15, 2025
England have announced their squad for the fourth Test against India, starting on July 23 at Old Trafford. 🔥#Test #England #ENGvIND #WTC pic.twitter.com/Suhy1Zi3OP
India had a golden opportunity at Lord’s to stay in the series and take the lead. India had performed well on this ground in the last 10-12 years. But the defeat here has turned all the equations upside down. Then there are the challenges of Manchester and Kennington Oval. We have never won in Manchester. Since 1936, India has played 9 Test matches on this ground, out of which it has lost four and drawn five. It remains to be seen whether Shubman Gill is able to end the reign of Manchester after Birmingham.
But it is difficult for India to win the series…!
At the same time, everyone has seen the condition of the Oval when Australia defeated India by more than 200 runs in the final of WTC 2023. Then Mark Wood can also return in the last Test. In such a situation, if Carse, Archer, Wood and Atkinson get a chance, they can prove to be dangerous for Team India. Therefore, looking at the record of Team India on both the grounds and the current English conditions and performance, we are saying that now it seems difficult for India to win the series.
'Repeated batting collapses will concern India'@MichaelVaughan & @DineshKarthik dissect India's chase, on Cricbuzz Chatter#ENGvIND pic.twitter.com/popEWuqXHx
— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) July 15, 2025
3 big questions in front of ‘Double G’…
Not only this, the playing combination of Team India is also going to be a big headache for coach Gambhir and captain Gill. Injury, workload management and poor performance on different aspects, these three things are also troubling the team management a lot. Due to this, now three big questions have also arisen in front of the team and the coach. Let’s know what are those three big questions:-
1- Jasprit Bumrah’s availability
It is worth noting that it was announced before the series that Bumrah will not play the second and fourth Test matches. This has been seen so far. Despite the defeat in the first Test and Team India falling behind, he was not played. Now the same situation has come before the fourth Test when India is trailing 1-2 in the series. But it seems difficult for Bumrah to play.
In such a situation, who should be given a chance in his place is also a big question. Prasidh has been beaten a lot in two matches. Akashdeep also did not look completely fit and comfortable in the third Test. In such a situation, it is also not known how effective Arshdeep Singh will be, because he has never played Test and neither does he have experience of English conditions.
2- Karun Nair’s flop show, thoughts on number 3…
The number 3 position and Karun Nair’s performance have been a matter of concern since the first Test. Sai Sudarshan played at number 3 in the first Test but he was also a flop. After that, he sat out in the last two matches and Karun Nair was brought to number 3 from number 6-7. He has also failed. In such a situation, after flopping in 6 consecutive innings, his ouster is considered certain. At the same time, there is no guarantee of how effective Sai Sudarshan will be. However, the team has a talented player in the form of Abhimanyu Easwaran, but his game has not yet come to the fore at the international level.
3- Rishabh Pant’s injury
Rishabh Pant’s injury also put India in trouble in the Lord’s Test. He was not present in wicketkeeping. India lost 25 runs in the second innings in byes. Apart from this, he was also having trouble in batting. Due to this, he looked uncomfortable in both the innings and was seen playing one handed shots many times leaving his left hand. In the second innings also, he tried to defend the ball on which he was bowled with one hand. In such a situation, it is very important for him to be fit. If he is not fit, then without any thinking, Dhruv Jurel will have to be tried.
