The world cricket scene is fierce. The competition between traditional rivals England and India sees them battling for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, entering the critical fourth Test at the pitch at Old Trafford.
The global cricket market is still somewhat underserved, but there are solutions to be had. Fans closely following the series can explore online betting platforms for live odds and match predictions. Can India turn the corner and take the critical fourth Test against their rivals?
England Spinner Sees Success for India
Though batter Rishabh Pant is dealing with a broken foot, confidence seems to be on the side of India heading into the fourth Test. In fact, former English spinner Monty Panesar feels that India has a good chance of claiming the Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
Panesar believes that so long as they focus on the basics and use the strength of the pitch to their advantage, they should walk away with the victory. Then again, they are coming off an ugly loss, a 22-run defeat at Lord’s which put them down 2-1 in the Tour of England.
Heading into the fourth Test, England will bowl first at Old Trafford. This comes thanks to Ben Stokes winning his fourth toss in a row at the test series against India. England does have some momentum on its side as spinner Liam Dawson returns to test cricket for the first time in eight years.
Test Matches at Old Trafford
There have been nine Test matches played by India at Old Trafford. On four occasions, England has walked away victorious, with five of the matches ultimately ending in a draw. The last time they traveled to the venue with Mahendra Singh at the helm was in 2014.
That was an important milestone because it was the first time they played at the venue in 24 years, though they ultimately wound up losing by an innings and 54 runs. Panesar, the veteran of 50 Test matches for England, is familiar with the venue and has one of the best-ever figures while playing at the venue.
Avoid Collapse
The key for India will be to maintain momentum and avoid a collapse. On Day One of the fourth Test, India had a strong start and some promising first innings in the match. England has the talent to continue a torrent of runs while consistently achieving a good run rate.
Falling behind could be too much for India to recover from. Given the history between the two countries in this event, it would be a devastating blow for India to ultimately lose the fourth Test. If England is somehow able to get above 500 runs in their first innings, the task will become much more difficult for India. Even a draw may be a positive result, though garnering an outright win would be a major achievement given the history between the two.