English skipper Joe Root on Wednesday won the toss and chose to bat first in the third Test against India, a day-night affair, at Ahmedabad’s Motera Stadium. 

Root said he hoped the visitors can get a big score like in the first innings of the opening Test in Chennai, where he scored a scintillating double ton. 

“Hoping the wicket will dry out as the game goes along. It is certainly harder and seems to swing more compared to the red ball. We are very excited to be here at 1-1 and are looking to do well,” Root said.

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England have made four changes to their eleven, with Zak Crawley, who missed the first two Tests with a thumb injury on the eve of the series opener, replacing Rory Burns at the top of the order. 

Jonny Bairstow has also been included in the playing XI, replacing Dan Lawrence at number three, while James Anderson also returns after being rested for the second Test in place of all-rounder Moeen Ali.

On the other hand, India have made just two changes
to their starting XI, with express paceman Jasprit Bumrah returning in place of
Mohammad Siraj, after being rested for the second Test in Chennai, and Washington Sundar replacing chinaman Kuldeep Yadav. 

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Skipper Kohli admitted he would also have chosen to bat if he won the toss, and said, “We would look to get into the game early on. The practice wickets have been quite spicy, something that we have enjoyed as a team. I am a bit worried about the lights. We have played in a similar stadium in Dubai, but you need to adapt pretty quickly.”

The four-match series is delicately poised at 1-1, with qualification to the World Test Championship final depending on the outcome of this encounter. 

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Another defeat for either side will rule them out of the race, with England needing to win both remaining matches to play New Zealand at the Lord’s Cricket Ground in June, while India need to win just one. A stalemate will see Australia qualify for the final. 

England playing XI: Zak Crawley, Dom Sibley, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root (c), Ben Stokes, Ollie Pope, Ben Foakes (wk), Jofra Archer, Jack Leach, Stuart Broad, James Anderson.

India playing XI: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah.