Padikkal makes test debut for India, England bat first in final test

DHARAMSALA, India : India batter Devdutt Padikkal earned his first test cap in the fifth and final test against England at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium on Thursday.

Padikkal becomes the fifth India player to make his test debut in the ongoing series. He replaced Rajat Patidar, who sustained an ankle injury during training on the eve of the match.

The 23-year-old will have to wait to prove his batting prowess though as England captain Ben Stokes elected to bat after winning the toss at the picturesque stadium in the foothills of the Himalayas.

Fast bowler Mark Wood replaced Ollie Robinson in the only change for the tourists, who will be playing for pride after India grabbed an unassailable 3-1 lead in Ranchi.

"It is another opportunity to go out there and represent your country ... every game is an event in itself," Stokes said.

"Coming away from India 3-2 sounds better than 4-1."

India dropped Akash Deep and welcomed back pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah as they seek to consolidate their position at the top of the World Test Championship standings.

"We have done really well in the series so far and this is an opportunity for us to finish it on a high," India captain Rohit Sharma said.

Teams:

India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravindra Jadeja, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wicketkeeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah

England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (captain), Ben Foakes (wicketkeeper), Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson, Shoaib Bashir