What Fifth and final Test of the five-match series between India and England When August 15 to 19, 2014 Where Kennington Oval, London The Teams India It’s almost as if Lord’s never happened. The Lord’s victory seems to be a distant memory. Memories of Indian players gung-ho about an epic win at the venue after 28 years with smiles galore seems to have faded off. Clouds of problems loom large over Team India. Do they have it in them to win overseas? Does the team have the aptitude for application to enforce results in their favour? Can this team turn the tides to level the series? Can this face of new India return home with a better reading? Questions aplenty; the answers of which lie within the team itself. None can come to India’s rescue; India failed to take the olive branch (read Hurricane Bertha) and failed to bat a day even after knowing there were chances of no play in the days to follow. The clouds wept on day 4 & 5 and along with it the Indian hopes who would have lamented seeing the heavens pouring down in full flow. A new day, a new beginning and hopefully new ideas await India as they sport the whites one final time in England this season. For starters, India needs to get their playing eleven right. Gautam Gambhir who played his first Test in more than a year and a half looked rusty in both innings. That leaves the team with the question - Is Shikhar Dhawan India’s better bet ahead of Gautam Gambhir or will the team believe in the experience of Gambhir at the top of the order? India have failed to register a 50-plus score in the last eight Tests. Those are appalling numbers and the opening stand needs to fire if they are to get the team in a position of advantage. Obviously a lot more is expected of Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli; if not now, when? Will India pump their batting order by bringing in Rohit Sharma and finally giving Jadeja a pink slip for the final Test? But MS Dhoni mentioned in the post match conference, who will they replace Jadeja with? Keeping that in mind, Jadeja could retain his place in the side and India might go in with the same bowling combination at Oval provided Mohammed Shami is brought in as a replacement for Pankaj Singh. Grab those chances, hold on to those catches, strike early with the ball and bat with intent. Problems solved? Easier said than done though.

England These are good times for English cricket. Alastair Cook vowed to comeback strong after his side’s loss at Lord’s. Cook and company have comeback and how. The captain has got the runs, Ian Bell is scoring big, James Anderson and Stuart Broad are sending shivers to the Indian batsmen with the new cherry and Moeen Ali is picking wickets for fun. England does have a few things to ponder upon ahead of the fifth Test though. Sam Robson has been found wanting outside the off-stump and has not been able to get off to good starts. His batting woes have been overshadowed by stellar batting performances by Gary Ballance, Ian Bell and captain Cook himself. Varun Aaron troubled the England batsmen with his pace and short stuff and England would be looking to counter that problem before they walk out at the Oval. England’s third and fourth seamer bowling options have not been impressive. Chris Jordan and Chris Woakes have hardly been as effective as the Broad- Anderson duo and one of them could be replaced in the final Test. Stuart Broad who had to walk back with a broken nose after being hit by a Varun Aaron bouncer in the previous Test is expected to play with a face mask. England might field an unchanged squad and may not want to change the winning combination. Can England stamp their authority over India and make it 3-1? Cook sure would be gunning for a win instead of playing out a tame draw. Key Players India At a time when most of the front-line batsmen were finding it difficult to put bat on ball, Ravichandran Ashwin looked ominous at the crease. There has never been any doubt over his batting credentials and Ashwin showed why in the previous Test. Anderson and Broad were dealt with equal confidence and he looked unfazed by the Moeen Ali threat. India would want the bowler in Ashwin to take center stage as well and bowl a more attacking line looking to take wickets; a quality that he showed in the past even when he was going for runs. Wickets from the off-spinner and runs lower down the order, India need both from R Ashwin. England Part-time bowler? Who? From going for plenty in the first two Tests to being England’s ace in the bowling line-up, Moeen Ali has come a long way. He has 19 wickets to his name so far in the series and the best players of spin have found it difficult to score against his guile with the ball. Flight, turn, bowling to a plan and according to fields, Ali seems to be Captain Cook’s answer for a wicket. Even if India sail through the Anderson-Broad phase, they can be rest assured to apply themselves harder when Moeen Ali walks out to bowl with the ball in his hand. Stats overview 1.Average first innings score at The Oval: Overall - 350 Since 2000- 416 2. Average second innings score at The Oval: Overall- 305 Since 200- 352 3. Result summary at The Oval:

4. Head-to-head:

5. Last meeting between both sides at The Oval Brief scores: 18-22 August 2011 England 591-6d; India 300 and 283. England won by inns & 8 runs 6. Form guide (most recent listed first): India: Lost, Lost, Won, Drawn, Drawn England: Won, Won, Lost, Drawn, Lost 7. Pace vs Spin at The Oval (Who has been more effective) In last 5 Tests:

The Squads India: M.S. Dhoni (C & WK), Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Gautam Gambhir, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Ishwar Pandey, Ishant Sharma, Stuart Binny, Varun Aaron, Naman Ojha, Pankaj Singh. England (5th Test): Alastair Cook (C), Moeen Ali, James Anderson, Gary Ballance, Ian Bell, Stuart Broad, Chris Jordan, Steven Finn, Jos Buttler (WK), Sam Robson, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes.