The Oval Test is less than 24 hours away from beginning, which is a must-win game for India to save this away Test series, and it will be a remarkable result for the Indian cricket team. On the eve of the Test series decider, Indian Test captain Shubman Gill spoke about the availability of Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah for the crucial Test match.

The visitors India are trailing the five-match Test series in England (Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025) by 2-1 with one to go. The Oval Test will begin on Thursday (July 31), where England need to draw to win the series, and India must win the Test to save the series 2-2. 

Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah is the joint second leading wicket-taker in the ongoing Test series with 14 wickets in five innings, including two fifers. He has already played three Tests in this series, which was expected. Due to the workload management, while there isn't much gap between the end of the Manchester Test and the beginning of The Oval Test, Bumrah's availability is doubtful for the series decider.

Last day, ESPNcricinfo reported that Bumrah is likely to miss The Oval Test as the medical team felt that the Indian pacer needed to rest, considering his back and the long-term implications. 

We will take a decision tomorrow: Indian captain on Jasprit Bumrah's availability for The Oval Test

However, in the latest press conference, Indian captain Shubman Gill revealed that the decision on Bumrah's availability for The Oval Test will be decided on the matchday morning. As the wicket looks very green, the right-arm fast bowler's service is likely to be very crucial for the visitors, especially when the Test series is at stake. 

Gill said, “We will take a decision (on Bumrah) tomorrow; the wicket looks very green. So we will see how it turns out."

See Also: Ben Stokes rested as England announce their playing XI for ENG vs IND 5th Test

Arshdeep Singh has been asked to get ready: Shubman Gill

While the left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh is reportedly close to making his Test debut, the Indian skipper revealed that the pacer had been asked to get ready, and the final decision would be taken on matchday. 

The Indian Test captain added, "Arshdeep Singh has been asked to get ready, but we will take a call on the playing XI after looking at the pitch, by this evening. England haven’t picked a frontline spinner, we have Jadeja and Washi to do the job.”

While the visitors India are fighting to save the remarkable away Test series in England, they have a big setback in less than 48 hours before the beginning of the last Test of the five-match series against the hosts England. 

It is the five-match Test series between the hosts England and the visitors India, named the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025. England are currently leading the Test series by 2-1 with a match to go. The hosts won the first and third Tests of the series by five wickets (at Leeds) and 22 runs (at Lord's), respectively. Meanwhile, India won the second Test of the series by 336 runs at Edgbaston, while incredibly drew the fourth Test in Manchester to keep the series alive. 

Kennington Oval or The Oval in London will host the last Test of the series, starting on July 31. It will be the must-win fixture for India, who can only draw the Test series as their best possible result. Meanwhile, a draw in the upcoming Test will be enough for the hosts to win this Test. 

See Also: Who should play ENG vs IND 5th Test if Jasprit Bumrah does not play?

Jasprit Bumrah likely to miss The Oval Test

So, there is no doubt about the importance of The Oval Test for India, but the visitors have got a big blow, as the prime Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah is reportedly set to miss the Test series decider. According to a recent ESPNcricinfo report, the BCCI medical team believes that the fast bowler should be rested, considering his back and the long-term implications. 

Before the start of the Test series, it was reported that Bumrah would be available for the first three Tests of the series, while he might miss the other two due to the need for a rapid recovery process. While the tireless Manchester Test ended on Sunday (July 27), the last Test of the series is set to begin on Thursday (July 31). Although Bumrah didn't need to bowl on Sunday, the BCCI medical team feels that the pacer needs more time to be available for a big Test match. 

Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025: Bumrah is joint second-most wicket-taker

Despite being rested from the Edgbaston Test, Bumrah is the joint second leading wicket-taker in the ongoing Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025 with 14 wickets in five innings with an average of 26.00, including two fifers. 

According to an ESPNcricinfo report, Akash Deep is likely to replace Bumrah for The Oval Test. The Bengal pacer claimed a ten-wicket haul during the Edgbaston Test, where the visitors set a record-breaking win. He also featured in the Lord's Test but missed the Manchester Test due to an injury. 

Even before the beginning of the last Test of the thrilling ongoing five-match Test series, the controversy erupted after the Indian head coach Gautam Gambhir and the chief curator of The Oval had a heated argument. Indian batting coach Sitanshu Kotak opened up about that incident. 

During a recent practice session, Gautam Gambhir and Lee Fortis, the chief curator of The Oval, had a heated argument. According to the Indian batting coach Kotak, the head coach wanted to look at the pitch from a closer angle while wearing joggers, but the curator didn't like that.

[WATCH] ENG vs IND 5th Test: Oval's Lee Fortis open up his side over controversy with Gautam Gambhir

We did nothing wrong: Indian batting coach

In the press conference, the Indian batting coach claimed, “When we were having a look at the wicket, they sent a man to tell us to stay 2.5 metres away from the pitch. We were wearing joggers.”

Understanding the curators' view, Kotak felt that the Indian team didn't do anything wrong in that situation to make it a heated moment. He added, “We know curators are possessive about the square. What he said about the head coach is his opinion and I don’t want to comment. But we did nothing wrong."

The way he spoke, it was a bit arrogant

Kotak felt that the chief curator was arrogant, for which the man is popular in world cricket. The Indian batting coach said, “You can be protective about the square, but not arrogant. It’s not an antique that you can’t touch. He said they were trying to grow grass, but we were in joggers so we didn’t see the problem. The way he spoke, it was a bit arrogant. Everyone knows the curator at The Oval is not the easiest person to deal with.”

Indian batting coach talking about the heated conversation between Gambhir and curator. pic.twitter.com/5hMd6LYTOV

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 29, 2025

The Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy 2025, the five-match Test series between the hosts England and the visitors India, currently stands at 2-1 with the last Test yet to be played. The Oval in London will host the last Test, starting on August 31. It will be the must-win game for India only to draw the away series, while a draw will be enough for England to win this home Test series.  

After the late-night drama in Manchester on July 27, the series now moves to London. The final and fifth Test will be played at the historic Kennington Oval. England are leading the series 2-1, and will be aiming to win it, while India will fight hard to draw the series and end things on equal terms.

India haven’t had the best results at The Oval in Test cricket. They’ve played 17 matches here won only 2, lost 6, and drawn 9. Out of these, 16 matches were against England and one was the World Test Championship final against Australia in 2023.

India’s first win at The Oval came way back in 1971, which was a historic moment. Their second win at the venue was more recent, in 2021. But if we look at their last six games at this ground, India have lost four of them, which shows the challenge ahead.

India will also be missing some key players in this match. Rishabh Pant has been ruled out due to a toe injury. There is also doubt over Jasprit Bumrah’s availability. He was expected to play only three Tests in the series, and he’s already played those. So, the team management now has to decide whether to risk him in this final game. With the series result on the line and some players unavailable, India will need to bring their best game to draw the series.

ALSO READ: [WATCH] ENG vs IND 5th Test: Oval's Lee Fortis open up his side over controversy with Gautam Gambhir

India’s Test Record at The Oval