England vs India 2018: Top 3 player battles to watch out for

With the T20 and ODI series done and dusted, team India will be looking to avenge their defeat in the ODI series and bounce back strongly in the upcoming five match test series against a formidable English side led by Joe Root. Both the teams have played excellent cricket in recent times and will be looking to continue with their winning momentum. While England start off as favourites to to lift the trophy, their competition is against the Indian side currently on the top of ICC Test Rankings.

Indian batsmen will have their work cut out against the fierce English bowling line up possessing the ability to swing the ball both ways. The Indian team failed to win the series in their last two trips to England, and will be hoping to clinch the series this time around.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli will be hoping to improve his records on English soil, have failed to make a score over 50 in the last test series in England. His batting will play a key role in deciding the series.

Here are some player battles to look out for in the upcoming test series

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#3 Joe Root vs Ishant Sharma

Joe Root has been in excellent form

Joe Root is considered one of the most prolific batsman of the current era. He has been in rich form lately and has evolved as a great player of spin bowling. His technique of defending good deliveries and punishing the bad ones has worked wonders and helps him achieve the three figure mark more often than not.

India are aware of the threat Root possesses and will be looking to get him out cheaply. Indian pacer Ishant Sharma will have to take up the responsibility of sending Root back to the pavillion. Ishant has been in England a while now playing county cricket for Sussez, and has got used to the conditions offered by English pitches. Moreover, Root has been dismissed to pace bowling quite often in the recent times.

Root has an excellent average of 64.91 against off-spinners but his weakness against pacers was highlighted by Australian bowlers during the Ashes series last year, while the Indian pacer has shown tremendous form in county cricket with best figures of 5/69 during his stint with Sussex.

Ishant vs Root will be an exiting contest to witness throughout the series.

#2 Alastair Cook Vs R Ashwin

R Ashwin currently occupies fifth spot in ICC rankings

It is never easy being a Test opener, especially in the country of England. The new ball generally swings rapidly and it takes great deal for an opener to survive, let alone score runs consistently. But Cook is blessed with robust technique and patience required to counter the conditions. While his overall average against spinners is quite healthy, Cook has been unusually vulnerable against spin in the recent times.

One bowler who will looking to take advantage of this weakness will be Ravichandran Ashwin. Ashwin currently occupies fifth spot in the test rankings and will be looking to climb up the rankings with an improved performance. Moreover, he proves to be more lethal against left handed batsmen. Over the last three tours to Asia, Cook has fallen to spin 14 times in 17 innings, nine times to off-spinners.

Fans will be hoping for an intense battle between these two world-class players.

3# Virat Kohli vs James Anderson

Anderson has got better of Kohli several times in the past

The world of cricket has seen many rivalries and healthy competition against batsmen and bowlers. One such rivalry comes into action when both these men face of against each other.

The Indian skipper has time and again been compared to several other legendary players to have played the sport. Kohli has proven to be a run machine and has come to the rescue whenever the team needs him. He is arguably the best batsman of the current era. But when it comes to English conditions, his scoring rate has been poor and has seen him struggle against the swing offered by the pacemen.

James Anderson, as we know how dangerous he can be, troubled Virat with the ball throughout the entire series and managed to dismiss him on four occasions. He sent Virat packing by getting him either caught behind or at slips, the good old-fashioned pacer way.

Kohli averages a mere 6 against Anderson in Test Cricket

This is an evenly matched contest and fans are eagerly waiting to see these two amazing players face off against each other once again during the upcoming series.