The series will kick off in June 20 in Headingley.
England head coach Brendon McCullum reckoned that his team knows what they have to achieve in the upcoming five-match Test series against India, starting from June 20. With this series, the Indian team will also begin their new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. The English side will enter the series after completing a whitewash over the West Indies in a six-match ODI and T20I series.
They will now look to do the same in the longest format of the game against India. The Three Lions have been struggling with a few injuries as star pacer Mark Wood has been ruled out for at least the first three Test matches. Jofra Archer will also miss the first Test against India.
“They’re an outstanding cricketing nation, who will come here with high hopes, and we are looking forward to seeing them. It’s important the guys refresh. We know where we want to get to as a Test team. There are some quality bowlers that are unavailable, but we have a nice, varied bowling attack with Chris Woakes, Sam Cook, Brydon Carse, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue for the high-pace element. We have Shoaib Bashir, who is growing in Test cricket every day. We know we are going to be tested against India, and they will arrive prepared,” McCullum told Sky Sports Cricket.
Young all-rounder Jacob Bethell has been recalled, and England’s coach reserved big praise for him. McCullum feels that the 21-year-old is gracious and has some real talent. He also has leadership qualities, and it makes him unique. The former New Zealand cricketer also lauded the likes of Jamie Smith and Ben Duckett. He feels that these players are fearless and can become more rounded players.
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Talking about the Indian team, it will be interesting to see how coach Gautam Gambhir will use Jasprit Bumrah. He made it clear that the star pacer will only play three Test matches against England. The team made this decision to reduce the workload on the Ahmedabad bowler. Shubman Gill, who recently became India’s full-time Test captain, will have a tough task in the upcoming five-match Test series against England.
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