Hameed or Buttler? Two spinners or three? Our experts make their picks...
Sunday 6 November 2016 17:32, UK
England head into the first Test against India on Wednesday with at least two of the XI from the second Test in Bangladesh sweating over their place in the side.
Gary Ballance's struggles continued and he looks set to miss out in Rajkot. The question is: who replaces him? There appear to be two standout options. The first would see Haseeb Hameed come in for his Test debut and Ben Duckett move down to No 4, while the alternative is to reshuffle the middle order and hand a recall to Jos Buttler.
There is also the issue of whether Alastair Cook goes in with two or three spinners in his team and which of the four at his disposal get the nod.
We put these quandaries to our Sky Sports cricket experts and asked them to name their England XI for the series opener...
Team for first Test: Cook, Hameed, Root, Duckett, Ali, Bairstow, Stokes, Woakes, Ansari, Broad, Batty
"Introducing Haseeb Hameed adds solidity and also offers England a right-left-handed combination at the top of the order.
"Zafar Ansari should give Alastair Cook more control than Adil Rashid, while Gareth Batty's defensive off-spin should complement Moeen Ali's more attacking style."
Team for first Test: Cook, Hameed/Buttler, Root, Duckett, Ali, Stokes, Bairstow, Woakes, Ansari, Rashid, Broad
"It's very difficult to say before you see the pitch. I would definitely make one change in the batting and leave Gary Ballance out. You could obviously open with Hameed and move Duckett down to four, I've not got a problem with that.
"It just gives England a very slow start, Hameed and Cook maybe going nowhere when it could be the best time to bat before it starts spinning and reverse swinging. Duckett at four is fine, he's batted a lot of his career at four.
"The other one - that would be a bit more of a gamble - is to keep Duckett opening and get Jos Buttler in. He's only played one red ball game in the last year and this is where England haven't quite been ahead of the curve.
"I would definitely want two spinners. Moeen Ali, obviously, and Rashid has to play for me. He didn't bowl particularly well in Bangladesh, even though his stats were fine, but you need someone spinning it away from the bat.
"He's played five Test matches now, batsmen get a long run in the side - you look at Ballance etc and they get given a long, long go and I think you need to give Rashid a long go as well to see if he can prove that he can do it in international Test match cricket.
"I would probably think of the third spinner and go three and three. With all those right-handers I would want options of spinning it away from the bat so if they are going to go with three spinners I would go Moeen, Rashid and Ansari."
Team for first Test: Cook, Duckett, Root, Ali, Bairstow, Stokes, Buttler, Woakes, Rashid, Broad, Finn
"Ben Duckett showed enough class in the last innings in Dhaka to stay as opener. He has to play, so the other option would be to bat him at No 4, but personally I'd bring Jos Buttler in for Gary Ballance.
"I accept that Jos has little recent pedigree in red-ball cricket, but he is a special talent. I'd slot him in at No 7, and move Moeen up to No 4 to split up the left handers in the order, with Jonny Bairstow at No 5.
"It's incredibly harsh for Bairstow to lose the gloves, as he kept brilliantly in tough conditions in Bangladesh, but he needs to move up the order as he, Cook and Root are our best batsmen.
"I've also gone with a fourth seamer over a third spinner, because in Bangladesh the seamers looked the most threatening, especially when the ball reversed."
Team for first Test: Cook, Hameed, Root, Duckett, Bairstow, Stokes, Ali, Woakes, Rashid, Broad, Ansari/Ball
"I've gone with Hameed to open. I thought he should have played in Bangladesh - he has an excellent technique, and temperament, for sub-continent conditions.
"Critics would argue it doesn't make for the most free-scoring combination with Cook. But In India, the key will not be scoring quickly in the first innings, but scoring big, and England have to address this problem of theirs where they so often start 30-3, 40-3.
"That would mean moving Duckett to No 4, which I'm reluctant to do, but I feel the batting line-up would be better balanced that way. Plus, I'm moving Bairstow up to No 5 to mix-up the left and right-handers.
"I'm sticking with Rashid. I think over a five-match series you need to be brave, and his selection is a bold one. He'll spin the ball away from India's right-handers, and he also has that little bit of mystery that can break a partnership.
"Ansari would be my final spinner, over Batty, if the pitches turn. If not, I like Jake Ball - he bowls an excellent line and length outside off-stump, and with great control. I'd have no problem chucking him into a big series."
Team for first Test: Cook, Duckett, Root, Bairstow, Ali, Stokes, Buttler, Woakes, Rashid, Batty, Broad
"I'd stick with the same openers, Duckett should be a good foil for Cook while Root, at No 3, is England's best player and will be key for them in this series.
"In the middle order I'd move Jonny Bairstow up to four - he's another hugely important player - with Moeen Ali, tactically a good player of spin, at five and Ben Stokes at six. He's such a powerful player and he can dictate the game, just like Jos Buttler who I've got in at No 7.
"I'd also have Buttler keeping. That's no detriment to Bairstow, just to keep the balance of the team. Chris Woakes then extends the batting order and will be important if the ball reverses. Rashid has to play because if he isn't playing in India, then where is he?
"I'd have Gareth Batty over Ansari for his experience and Stuart Broad leading the attack, using his cutters. Of course, there is James Anderson waiting in the wings too, ready to step in once he has acclimatised."
Watch the first Test between India and England from 3.30am on Wednesday, live on Sky Sports 2 HD.
