Event of the Day: England v India
Our event of the day is the First Day of the Fifth Test of the India Tour of England, where the visitors will try to leave with a consolation victory. After suffering a 60-run defeat in the previous test at the Rose Bowl, India have pride to fight for as England hold an insurmountable 3-1 lead in the series. Despite the fact that the series is all decided, both squads have reasons to be competitive this Friday. India have to make a statement after only winning one of the last nine series they have played outside of Asia, while England will surely try to give their all-time leading Test run-scorer, Alastair Cook, a proper farewell. Cook will be saying goodbye to international matches after 12 years with the national squad.
The Oval will be the venue for what should be a very entertaining matchup. Following the prior clash in Southampton, there will be a change at Wicketkeeper for England, with Jonny Bairstow regaining his place behind the stumps from Jos Buttler. It looks like Moeen Ali will have another chance at making the tricky number 3 batting position his own. James Anderson is on the verge of reaching a huge record in the history of cricket; he is just four more wickets away from equaling Australia’s Glenn McGrath's record of 563 for the most Test wickets taken by a pace bowler. Meanwhile, India might make some changes to their lineup with Ravi Jadeja coming in for R Ashwin and Hanuma Vihari making his Test debut at the expense of Hardik Pandya. It should be an excellent conclusion to the English Test summer.
Honourable mentions around the world go to the US Open day 12 and the Men’s singles semi-finals. In one of the most longed-for matches of the tournament, multiple champion Rafael Nadal is facing the Torre de Tandil, Juan Martín Del Potro, trying to qualify for Sunday’s final. In the other clash, Australian Open finalist, Marin Čilić, will be clashing with Novak Djokovic in another great showdown to decide the second finalist of the last Grand Slam of the year. The County Championship will have action too, with Nottinghamshire facing Yorkshire at Trent Bridge. The Tour of Britain will have its sixth stage, starting from Barrow-in-Furness and finishing at Whinlatter Pass. The Vuelta a España will be having Stage 13, departing from Candás and hitting the finish line in La Camperona after a distance of 175.5km. The BMW Championship will be having its second day of action, with the elite of golf playing for a place in the Tour Championship. The Australian Football League Finals continue with the game between the Melbourne Demons and the Geelong Cats. The National Rugby League Finals, see the Melbourne Storm play the South Sydney Rabbitohs at AAMI Park. Premiership Rugby is opening the second week of competition with a match between Northampton Saints and Harlequins at Franklin’s Garden.
Whatever you’re watching, enjoy!
Photos by ECB Cricket; BCCI