Both the teams will lock horns to start the long series on a high as they will also be eyeing the spot for the World Test Championships final.
New Zealand have already sealed their place as the first finalist while India and England are in contention to face them. India need to win at least two matches in the series while England have to prove their authority in three games.
India will start the series as favourites after registering a historic Test series win in Australia last year. Many cricket critics have also predicted a series win for the Indian team over England. Meanwhile, England are also high on confidence after beating Sri Lanka in the two-match series in spin-friendly conditions. Some senior players including Virat Kohli will return to the Indian team for the series. Kohli, who missed the last three Tests of the Australia tour due to paternity leave, will lead the Indian team again. While veteran pacer Ishant Sharma and flamboyant all-rounder Hardik Pandya have also included in the squad for first two Tests. Kohli on Thursday already revealed that Shubman Gill will open the innings alongside Rohit Sharma in the first Tests and Rishabh Pant will play over Wriddhiman Saha as the wicketkeeper-batsman.
India vs England Full Squads
India Squad: Virat Kohli (c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mayank Agarwal, Wriddhiman Saha Also Read - Rishabh Pant's Interaction With Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Nadeem Wows Fans With Sledging During 1st Test Between India-England in Chennai | WATCH
England Squad: Joe Root (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Rory Burns, Dominic Sibley, Daniel Lawrence, Ben Stokes, Ollie Pope, Moeen Ali, Jofra Archer, Jack Leach, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Chris Woakes, Ben Foakes, Olly Stone, Dominic Bess