England won the toss on Thursday and decided to bat first in the fourth and final cricket test against India that will determine the teams for the World Test Championship.
Jasprit Bumrah has gone on leave due to personal reasons for India and has been replaced by Mohammed Siraj. England made two changes with Dan Lawrence and Dom Bess coming in for Stuart Broad and Jofra Archer.
With India leading the series 2-1, a win or a draw for India will secure the series and a place in the test championship final against New Zealand. A win for England would seriously complicate matters for the hosts and help Australia; India needs a series win to advance to the final and prevent a final between New Zealand and Australia.
England's captain Joe Root, right, and teammate James Anderson attend a training session ahead of the fourth test cricket match between India and England at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India, Wednesday, March 3, 2021. (AP PhotoAijaz Rahi)
England opened the four-test series with a 227-run victory. India rallied to level it in Chennai with a 317-run victory and won the third third test by 10 wickets in two days on a spin-friendly wicket at Ahmedabad.
India has not lost two tests in a home series since 2012, when England won.
Lineups: India: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj
England's captain Joe Root, left, reaches out for the ball during a training session ahead of the fourth test cricket match between India and England at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India, Wednesday, March 3, 2021. (AP PhotoAijaz Rahi)
England: Dom Sibley, Zak Crawley, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root (captain), Ben Stokes, Ollie Pope, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Dom Bess, Jack Leach, Jimmy Anderson
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