Will it be wise for India to take Krishna to Siraj for 1 Test to play his own.

India cricket team have the luxury of choosing between Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna in their playing XI for the 1st Test against England. The five-match Test series in the UK will get underway from June 20 onwards. While Siraj does have the experience, there are a lot of factors that India can benefit from by fielding Krishna in their playing XI.

Siraj vs Krishna – who should India pick in their playing XI

Siraj’s form off-late has not been that great. Despite being the second most over worked Indian bowler in the previous calendar year, he did not deliver on the expectations in his last Test series against Australia. He was then dropped from the Champions Trophy squad. After getting off to a fiery start in the IPL 2025, he turned out to be quite ineffective and expensive in the latter half.

Krishna, on the other hand, made the most of his opportunity when he finally got to play a Test after being on the bench for nearly over a year. In the only Test he played in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, he picked up six wickets. He was in exceptional form in the IPL, finishing as the leading wicket taker with 25 wickets to his name from 15 matches.

Make no mistake, Siraj has tasted much success while playing in England in the past. He has 23 wickets from 6 Tests in the UK, with a best of 4/32. Krishna, meanwhile, has played only in South Africa and Australia and will be playing for the first time in England.

However, Krishna’s height advantage could come of good use to India in England, apart from the fact that he is in red-hot form. While India will have to juggle around their pacers throughout the series, Gill and co. can afford to start with the Karnataka pacer over his Hyderabad counterpart in the 1st Test at Headingley, Leeds.