The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has unveiled the England playing XI for the upcoming fifth and final Test against India, scheduled to take place at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala. This decisive match is set to commence on March 7, with India currently holding a commanding lead in the series at 3-1.

As of now, India holds the top position in the World Test Championship (WTC) table, boasting 62 points and an impressive winning percentage of 64.58. On the other hand, England finds themselves in eighth place out of nine teams in the WTC, accumulating 21 points with a winning percentage of 19.44.

Throughout the Test series, England has experimented with various team combinations. Notably, they have opted for a two-pacer strategy in matches held in Ranchi and Rajkot, while employing three spinners and one pacer in other instances.

However, the conditions in Dharamshala are expected to be cold and cloudy, which could favor the England team. Consequently, they have opted to field two pacers this time to exploit these conditions to their advantage against India.

Regarding the batting lineup, there are no changes, with Ben Duckett, Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, and Joe Root maintaining their positions. Notably, Jonny Bairstow is set to mark his 100th Test match, providing stability to the middle order alongside captain Ben Stokes and wicketkeeper Ben Foakes.

James Anderson will be joined by Mark Wood, who returns to the side. Meanwhile, the spin department will be handled by Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir.

This is the England playing XI for 5the ^th Test in Dharamshala:

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (C), Ben Foakes (WK), Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson, Shoaib Bashir.