England and India are gearing up to meet in the fifth and final Test match, scheduled to begin on July 31 at The Oval. England hold the edge in this tightly contested series, having secured a 2–1 lead with victories in the first and third matches. Going into the fifth Test, England would be looking to seal the series, ensuring they come out victorious against India after many years. India, however, will be desperate to register a win and avoid the series defeat. Lately, they have been significantly hampered by injuries. The most notable blow is the absence of Rishabh Pant, the team's vice‑captain and top-order linchpin. Pant will miss the final Test after fracturing his foot on day one of the fourth Test at Old Trafford. Without Pant, India would expect other players to step up and produce runs. Additionally, India are likely to miss the services of pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah due to workload management. Bumrah has already played three Tests in the series, which the team management had targeted for him ahead of the series. Arshdeep Singh is likely to replace Bumrah in the playing XI. 

England, on the other hand, will aim to fight back after they saw the fourth Test end in a draw. They lead the series 2-1, but after witnessing India’s resurgence, coupled with crushing performances in the fourth Test, the task appears to be more challenging for the hosts. Captain Ben Stokes, despite battling a tender biceps-tendon issue, had vowed to lead the team into the decider. However, he has been ruled out of the fifth Test because of a shoulder injury. He struggled through several injuries in the fourth game, ruling him out of the decider. Amid Stokes' absence, Ollie Pope will lead England.

England have also made changes to their bowling attack, resting Jofra Archer and Brydon Carse. Liam Dawson has been left out of the XI. Seamers Gus Atkinson, Josh Tongue and Jamie Overton have been included for the decider. 

Head-to-head

Matches - 140

ENG won - 53

IND won - 36

Drawn - 51

England's XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope (c), Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, Josh Tongue

India’s probable XI: KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh