India may struggle to choose 11 players from their squad for the series opener in Headingley, Leeds. The first Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 will begin on Friday, June 20, and India will have to make several difficult decisions before then. These decisions will most likely be influenced by the nature of the surface at Headingley.
India A played an unofficial two-match series against the England Lions.
What followed was an intra-squad encounter between India A and India, both of which possessed outstanding players. KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel, and Anshul Kamboj all performed admirably in unofficial Tests.
Similarly, in the intra-squad encounter, players like as Shardul Thakur, Sarfaraz, Rahul, and others excelled. Furthermore, India’s core team includes players like as Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish, Shardul, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, and a few others, whose selection will be challenging and entirely dependent on the playing conditions.
What are the playing conditions in Headingley, Leeds?
Despite the fact that it is summer in England, the weather will most likely stay cloudy for the duration of the series. Other locations, with the exception of the last Test match, which will be played at The Oval, could greatly benefit pacers. Pacers will always be in the game, especially with Dukes balls, even when the old ball is used.
Dukes balls swing late as they age, making it tougher for batters. Headingley typically has a lot in it for the pacers, resulting in poor scores and collapse. As a result, it is not surprising that the sides be booted out early in some series, as was the case in the Ashes in 2019 and India’s tour of England in 2021.
Given the possibility of cloudy conditions in the opening Test, India may choose for an all-seam assault, potentially benching Kuldeep and Jadeja in favour of Nitish and Shardul. As the series progresses, the spinners may receive more chances.
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