England in India 2012: Fourth Test Match Preview

The fourth and final test match of England’s tour of India is scheduled to begin on December 13 at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur. After starting the series on a strong note, Team India frittered away to two humiliating defeats that saw them incur the wrath of fans and former players alike. The whole team seems to be tearing itself from the inside. The batsmen are struggling to build an innings while the bowlers seem simply incapable to bowl their opponents out. At Nagpur, the men in blue should try to salvage whatever little pride is left.

A win for the English would see them cross the final frontier: beating India at home. Based on current form, such a result is very likely. If England win this test series 3-1, a lot of Indian heads could start rolling. Team India could possibly have a new coach and captain while talks about Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement would gather steam. An interesting match that could decide the fate of a couple of men is set to start this Thursday.

Team news:

With Harbhajhan Singh, Yuvraj Singh and Zaheer Khan dropped, the Indian camp is sure to see a couple of changes for this test.  Ravindra Jadeja, Parwinder Awana and Piyush Chawla have been included for this test. It would be interesting to see what kind of jugglery would be performed before the final eleven is announced. While the all-rounder Jadeja could make his debut in place of the under-performing Yuvraj, Awana or Dinda should replace Zaheer Khan in the bowling department.

England have no reason to tinker with their lineup which seems to be on fire at the moment and very much at home in supposedly hostile sub-continent conditions. Steve Finn, who was picked ahead of Stuart Broad in the third test, had a good outing at the Eden Gardens but unfortunately might have to sit out at Nagpur due to a back injury. With Stuart Broad also missing from action, Tim Bresnan could partner James Anderson in the pace attack.

India’s probable lineup: Sehwag, Gambhir, Pujara, Sachin, Kohli, Jadeja, Dhoni, Ashwin, Ojha, Awana, Ishant.

England’s probable lineup: Cook, Compton, Trott, Pietersen, Ian Bell, Prior, Patel, Bresnan, Swann, Anderson, Panesar.

Tags: Dhoni, England, EPL, India, Preview, Result, Sachin, Sachin Tendulkar, Sehwag, Yuvraj, Zaheer

Category: Cricket