ENG vs IND fourth Test | Manchester weather to play a part in India’s team-combination

It was a rainy welcome for the Indian team in Manchester on Saturday. As the players reached the city and remained confined to their hotel rooms, a small group of Indian fans gathered outside, hoping to catch a glimpse of their favourite cricketers.

With the series on the line, the tickets for the fourth Test at Old Trafford are sold out, even though there is a forecast of rain — light to moderate — throughout.

While India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate indicated that a decision on the playing XI will be taken after assessing the surface and the conditions, over the last few years, the Old Trafford pitch has been quite effective for wrist-spinners, as the ball has turned the most here among England’s Test grounds.

With former England captain Michael Atherton suggesting that India should bring in three spinners — Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar — in the XI and go with just two pacers, it needs to be seen whether the team management subscribes to the idea.

“The pitches haven’t had the pace that they used to have. There are a couple of pitches in the end where there’s zing, but in the middle, the televised pitches are just flat, flat, flat. Wrist spin goes well at Old Trafford in some circumstances,” Atherton told Sky Sports Cricket.

The Indian team will have a closed-door training on Sunday afternoon, after quite a gap. A lot would also depend on how the weather holds up for the next few days. But if the windy and rainy conditions continue, chances are high that India will field an unchanged bowling line-up.

Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh is unlikely to be fit before the fourth Test.