India to play warm-up games against Derbyshire and Northamptonshire ahead of England white-ball fixtures

The Indian men's team to tour England later this year will face Derbyshire and Northamptonshire in T20s in their warm-up matches, as reported by The Cricketer. The fixtures against the county sides will help the tourists tune in well ahead of the three T20s and ODIs against Eoin Morgan & Co.

Southampton, Birmingham, and Nottingham will stage the three T20 internationals, while London and Manchester will host 50-over games. England and India will play the first two one-day internationals at Kennington Oval and Lord's.

The impact of COVID-19 has reduced the number of tour matches in recent years and the intensity of the global cricketing calendar has shortened the length of the tours. Hence, it's a financial lifeline for Derbyshire and Northamptonshire as they haven't had the opportunity to host international men's teams and The Hundred fixtures.

The likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja are likely to be part of the leg. Hardik Pandya, Shikhar Dhawan, Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Mohammed Shami are also expected to be part of the squad.

England and India to start the tour with the fifth Test

Joe Root and Virat Kohli. (Credits: Getty)

England and the men in blue will kick off the tour with the unfinished fifth Test from the 2021 series. Following the Indian team's refusal to take the field due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the BCCI and ECB decided to reschedule their fifth match. The tourists, captained by Virat Kohli at the time, led the five-Test series 2-1.

Captained by Rohit Sharma on this occasion, the visitors will need a draw or a win to record a historic series victory. The first Test in Nottingham ended in a draw; however, the hosts messed up a realistic chance of a win in the second Test.

Joe Root and co. bounced back to level the rubber in Headingley. Nevertheless, the men in blue inched ahead at the Oval with a 157-run win. Sharma & co. should fancy their chances against a shaky English side, having undergone a torrid time in Tests since 2021.