India vs England – 1st Test Match Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is India vs England taking place? Friday, February 5th, 2021 – 04:00 (UK)
Where is India vs England taking place? MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
What is the expected weather for India vs England? 28-29c with sunshine forecast all five days
What channel is India vs England on? The match will be televised live on Channel 4
Where can I stream India vs England? The match can be streamed live via SkyGo
LAST MEETING
England beat India by 118 runs
THE TEAM NEWS
INDIA
- India come off the back of a historic series win in Australia so confidence in their camp is flying right now as they welcome England for another hard-fought four-game Test series starting in Chennai.
- Their win at the Gabba was all the more impressive given all the absentees they had to contend with but they do welcome back skipper Virat Kohli along with Ravi Ashwin, Ishant Sharma and Jasprit Bumrah who are all expected to come back into the side for this opening Test.
- They are without Ravindra Jadeja however for this game and the loss of their key all-rounder means they have to decide whether to go with a fifth bowler or consider the likes of Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur or Axar Patel.
ENGLAND
- England are also coming into this series following a 2-0 victory in Sri Lanka, but while that series will have prepared them nicely for the conditions they will face in India, this represents a major step in quality facing arguably the best Test team in world cricket right now.
- Similar to India and their series in Australia, England can also welcome back some key faces with Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes both rested for the Sri Lanka tour and the key duo will return here.
- Ollie Pope is expected to rejoin the squad following injury but top order batsman Zak Crawley has been ruled out after suffering a sprained wrist following a fall during practice, while the selectors have plenty to choose from within their bowling group with the temptation to go with both Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad for this opener.
THE PREDICTION
There is plenty of interest around this opening Test between two of the best teams in the world in the longest format of the game as England face hosts India in Chennai. India come off a memorable win in Australia and they will only be strengthened by the return of various key players for this series along with home advantage. England will be relatively fresh themselves as they come off the Sri Lanka series’ win but they have still had to go through a quarantine period. They played relatively well against Sri Lanka but India will be a completely different animal even without fans in the stadium. The hosts are rich in quality and the key difference is likely to be in the batting with more Indian players in form compared to England. Joe Root is in sparkling form but this will be a much sterner test for him and the hosts simply have to be favoured to edge this opening game with bat and ball.