England vs India 2025: How well is Team India prepared for the Leeds Test? Analyzing the key player’s form in English conditions.
Team India will kick off their five-match Test series against England at Headingley, Leeds, on June 20. This series marks the beginning of a new era in Indian Test cricket, with Shubman Gill taking over the captaincy following the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. However, with a relatively inexperienced squad—particularly in English conditions—questions remain about how well-prepared India are for the challenge that awaits in Leeds.
Firstly, let’s take a look at the experience of India batters in English conditions in Tests:
County experience & unofficial Tests, the silver-lining for India’s batters Â
Only five India batters in the squad for the five-match England Test series have experience of playing in English conditions. KL Rahul has the best average, while Ravindra Jadeja aggregates the most runs on English soil in this squad. However, the numbers do not inspire confidence. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Karun Nair, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sai Sudharsan, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Washington Sundar are yet to make their Test debut or play Tests in England.Â
However, there is hope as some among these batters have played County Cricket in England while some have had a taste of English conditions in the recent games against England Lions. Hence, they will not be aliens to English conditions when they take on England at Leeds.
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For example, Nair has scored 487 runs at an average of 48.70 in 11 innings for Northamptonshire in the County Championship. Easwaran too, turned up for Northamptonshire and scored 736 runs at the average of 56.61 in 10 matches in 2023 and 2024.
Talking of the unofficial Tests, Nair was the highest run-getter for India A against West Indies A in the 2018 tour of England in two unofficial Tests with 210 runs at the average of 52.50. In the same tour, India A played England A in the only unofficial Test where Rishabh Pant emerged as the highest run-getter with 119 runs. Even in the current tour of England, Nair emerged as the highest run-getter with 259 runs at an average of 86.33.
Bumrah, the lone warrior
The bowlers in the squad for the Test series lack the experience and performance of playing Tests in England as well. They have a combined experience of bowling in just 35 Tests, with Jasprit Bumrah being the top performer with 37 wickets in nine Tests, featuring two five-wicket hauls. No other bowler in the squad has a five-wicket haul in England. Besides, the problem becomes aggravated as Bumrah would be playing only three to four Tests, owing to workload management.Â
Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, and Akash Deep are yet to make a debut in Tests or play the five-day format in England. However, Arshdeep has represented Kent in the 2023 County Championship. Besides, in the three unofficial Tests in the 2018 tour of England, Mohammed Siraj emerged the highest wicket-taker with 15 wickets.
Read More: How Bumrah fared on his last tour to England in 2021-22: A numerical analysis
Here’s the performance of India bowlers in the squad in Tests in England:Â
India Test squad in transition
Comparing the performances of Indian players in County Cricket or India A games with what awaits them in the England Test series doesn’t paint a promising picture ahead of the five-match series. While players like Karun Nair and Abhimanyu Easwaran have impressed in English domestic cricket, the gulf in quality between county bowlers and England’s international attack is significant.
India’s Test team under Shubman Gill is in a transition phase, with both the batting and bowling line-ups still finding their footing. This tour could shape—or shatter—several careers. Regardless of the outcome, it promises to be a valuable learning experience that could help these players emerge as more complete Test cricketers.
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