England Elect To Bat As India Miss Bumrah In Lord’s ODI Series Decider

England captain Harry Brook won the toss and decided to bat first in the series-deciding third ODI against India at Lord’s Cricket Ground.

India suffered a significant blow before the start of play after leading fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah failed a fitness assessment because of swelling in his knee.

India also lost Washington Sundar to a hamstring injury, forcing the team management to bring in Prince Yadav and Arshdeep Singh.

KL Rahul returned to the side after missing the previous ODI due to illness and took the place of Shivam Dube.

Shubman Gill admitted that India allowed a strong position to slip away in the second ODI after losing wickets in the middle overs. He said the team selected four pace bowlers because conditions at Lord’s were expected to favour seam bowling over spin.

Gill also backed Arshdeep Singh, saying the left-arm pacer had earned the opportunity.

England made a single alteration by replacing Saqib Mahmood with Josh Tongue.

Harry Brook said the pitch appeared ideal for batting and expressed confidence that England could post a challenging score before putting pressure on India.

Brook also praised his team’s performance in Cardiff, highlighting the bowlers’ efforts in restricting India during the middle overs. He credited Joe Root’s innings for setting the benchmark and said England would adapt to the conditions as they chased victory in the deciding match.

India: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (captain), Virat Kohli, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Axar Patel, Gurnoor Brar, Prince Yadav, Arshdeep Singh and Prasidh Krishna.

England: Ben Duckett, Jacob Bethell, Joe Root, Harry Brook (captain), Jos Buttler (wk), Sam Curran, Will Jacks, Gus Atkinson, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid and Josh Tongue.

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