Gill-Gumbir era begins with the Bajball Challenge in Leeds

The post-Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma era has started. Under Gautam Gambhir’s tutelage and Shubman Gill’s leadership, a fresh and upbeat Indian team beckons the new World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27 cycle with a tough England challenge. The first of the five-Test match series starts at Headingley, Leeds, where Ben Stokes scripted one of the all-time greatest Test wins some years ago. Now, can they make light work of a new-look Indian side, or will the inexperience in their bowling cost the hosts big time? Also, there are selection dilemmas for India, with Sai Sudharsan, Karun Nair, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shardul Thakur all fighting for spots.

England vs India 1st Test Day 1 Live

ENG vs IND 1st Test match details

• Date: June 20–24, 2025
• Time: 3:30 PM IST (Toss at 3:00 PM IST)
• Venue: Headingley, Leeds
• Live Telecast: Sony Sports Network
• Live Streaming: JioHotstar

Playing XIs: ENG vs IND

England (Confirmed XI):
Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (wk), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir

India (Probable XI):
Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Reddy, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

Pitch & Weather Report – Headingley, Leeds

The pitch carries a greenish tinge early on and offers assistance to pacers during the first two innings. However, it flattens out later, aiding batters significantly. Since 2010, Headingley has:

• Lowest average (27.48) for innings 1 & 2
• Best average (33.65) for innings 3 & 4
  Teams bowling first have won the last six Tests here.

Weather:

It’s been unseasonably warm and dry in Leeds, but rain is expected across the five days. This may bring swing into play early and possible deterioration later.

Key Stats: ENG vs IND

• Bumrah vs Root: Bumrah has dismissed Root 9 times in Tests.
• Root’s record vs India: 2846 runs at 58.08, with 10 centuries.
• Gill: Will be India’s 5th youngest Test captain at 25 years, 285 days.