England considers playing just one seamer in anticipation of rank turner in Hyderabad: Report

India and England will clash in a high-profile Test series as part of the 2023-25 ​​World Test Championship (WTC) cycle from Thursday (January 25). The opening match of the five-match series will be played at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. The battle between England's 'bazball' and India's spin attack will make the series more interesting. 

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Head coach Brendon McCullum confirmed that they will stick to their attacking style of batting. Meanwhile, they reportedly took one more bold decision to play with just one seamer in the first Test in anticipation of a rank turner in Hyderabad. England are likely to go with speedster Mark Wood and three other spinners to face the Indian batting unit as they feel that the pitch will assist the spinners throughout the match. 

Both the teams have been training in Hyderabad for a few days and the decision must have been taken after understanding the nature of the pitch. The visitors are reportedly even considering Joe Root's off-spin as a new ball option. Root is a valuable asset to the team in the longer format as he can chip in with some crucial wickets along with being the backbone of the batting department. 

Tom Hartley set to make his Test debut 

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The former England captain will provide valuable support to three other spinners - possibly Jack Leach, Tom Hartley, and Rehan Ahmed. Left-arm spinner Leach will be undoubtedly their frontline attacker. Hartley, who has 40 wickets at 36.57 from just 20 first-class appearances for Lancashire, is set to make his Test debut.

With Shoaib Bashir, another spinner in the team, yet to travel to India due to visa delays, Ahmed is likely to be named in the XI for the first Test. The 19-year-old's only Test appearance came against Pakistan in 2022, where he shone with 7 wickets including a fifer. Meanwhile, Bashir's visa issues have frustrated the England team, especially skipper Stokes. The right-arm off-break bowler has reportedly returned home to sort out the issues. 

England Test squad for India series: Ben Stokes (C), James Anderson, Rehan Ahmed, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow, Shoib Bashir, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes (Wk), Dan Lawrence, Tom Hartley, Jack Leach, Ollie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Mark Wood.