In the lead-up to the fifth and final Test against England at The Oval, Indian captain Shubman Gill declined to definitively confirm whether pace spearhead Jasprit Bumnrah would be selected for the last match. Bumrah has already featured in three matches which Indian management had targeted for him. Ahead of the England series, India had opted to limit Bumrah’s participation to just three of the five Tests, part of a deliberate plan aimed at managing his workload.
“We are going to take a decision (on Bumrah) tomorrow. The wicket looks very green. So we will see how it turns out,” Gill said in the press conference on the eve of the match.
England, revealing their playing XI, made a host of changes, selecting pacers Chris Woakes, Josh Tongue, Gus Atkinson and Jamie Overton. Their spin options will be Jacob Bethell and Joe Root. Meanwhile, Gill didn’t reveal a lot about India’s playing XI, saying the decision will be taken later. However, he said that pacer Arshdeep Singh has been asked to be ready.
“Like I said, we are going to take a decision on the playing XI later this evening. They (England) haven't gone with a frontline spinner. But they have Bethel and Root as their spin options. Luckily for us, Washington (Sundar) and Ravindra (Jadeja) have done such a good job with the ball and the bat. On that front, it's a no-brainer for us.”
“Arshdeep Singh has been asked to get ready, but we are going to take a decision later this evening. I will go and have a look at the wicket. I haven’t had the chance to look at the wicket," Gill said.