A crucial day for the ongoing Manchester Test, where England is positioned in a commanding position with captain Ben Stokes remaining on the track. During the early hours of the day, India will try to take England's remaining three wickets.

The host, with a lead of 186 runs on their account, will swing their blade to add some runs on the scoreboard. The Indian bowling attack was kind of blunt for most of Day 3. They clinched multiple wickets in the third session and managed to gain something from the surface later on. The 4th day of the test can be influenced by the weather.

According to the weather forecast, there will be rain threats over Old Trafford, Manchester, for some parts of the day. Despite a possible heavy climate, England batters may not be too troubled by the weather. There is a 30% chance of rain between 9 AM and 12 PM, and later on, around 1 PM, chances of rain are predicted to be 50%. But after that the weather is expected to remain dry but mostly cloudy for the rest of Day 4.

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Another though day for Team India 

The weather forecast suggests that the team batting first, which is now England, can utilize most from the atmosphere. If India is able to take the remaining 3 wickets of England, then they may have to bat under a cloudy sky. Under heavy weather, facing a new red Duke can be challenging for the batting second team on Day 4. After Joe Root's luxurious 150-run knock, Ben Stokes is now England's biggest strength. After retiring hurt, he got back to the field before stumps and will start a new day for his team.

England's skipper is now 23 runs away from a Test century; he'll be accompanied by Liam Dawson, who remained not out with 21 off 52. 

The renamed 'Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy' 2025 is living up to its stature exceedingly well. Cricket fans from across the globe have been treated to some enthralling and scintillating test cricket action over the past month. With three games done and two more to go, it is turning out to be one of the most exciting and memorable clashes of all time between England and India. The latter were on the wrong side of the results in two out of the three matches and currently trail by 1-2 to the hosts. England took the lead at Leeds, were levelled in Birmingham, and came out trumps, by the barest of margins, in an intense and heated battle at Lord's. With a nine-day break between the third and fourth match set to culminate, it is almost time for the teams to go head to head, lock horns and do it all over again. The extremely anticipated test at the famous Old Trafford in Manchester is just around the corner and slated to commence from Wednesday, 23rd July 2025. 

The series is at stake, and all the talks surrounding India in the build-up have been about setting things right and making amends before it is too late. Some genuine questions arose over the Indian batters and their lacklustre performances in the third test at Lord's. Their lack of intent and application, especially in the second innings, became a subject for intensive scrutiny. Their approach and eventual inability to chase down a low score, on a tricky pitch, turned into a hot topic and the talk of the town. It is not lost on India to script a famous and fabulous comeback against all the odds. They have done and been through that previously and would hope for a similar outcome this week. To meet their expectations and justify the talent in their ranks, they must get back to the drawing board and carve out a winning tactic. To outclass England and reach The Oval, London, for the fifth and final test as being still alive in the series, the visitors must plan to field the best combination and playing eleven. They should further hope to seize those crucial moments and edge ahead in the match. 

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The Three Things India must put together to win the Manchester Test

1. Fielding the perfect XI

Into the fourth test of the series, there are a few tired legs and injury concerns for the Indian team ahead of Manchester. In the bowling department, Akash Deep suffered a groin injury in the Lord's Test and is highly unlikely to play at Old Trafford, although his fitness test results are still awaited. The left-armer, Arshdeep Singh, injured himself in training and shall certainly miss the match if he were to be selected to feature. The all-rounder, Nitish Kumar Reddy, suffered an unfortunate but serious knee issue while working out in the gym and has since been ruled out of the remaining series. Setting aside all the conversations around workload management, Jasprit Bumrah, after all the confusion, is expected to play in back-to-back tests for the first time in this series. His consecutive stay was almost confirmed, in a recent interview, by Mohammed Siraj, his new ball bowling partner and a literal workhorse for the unit. Anshul Kamboj, the Haryana pacer who was part of the squad during warm-up matches, has been called as a cover and backup for the bowling arsenal. Whether he debuts or not would be interesting to see, but the likelihood of him adorning the whites is quite high.  

In batting, Karun Nair, finally, seems vulnerable to be replaced by Sai Sudarshan or Abhimanyu Easwaran. The latter has been knocking on the doors for quite some time now. Rishabh Pant injured his index finger in the previous match and did not keep the wickets for the majority of the game. He has started practicing wicket-keeping in the lead-up, but the team management might not want to risk a component of his, and this shall tempt them to play him only as a specialist batter. Dhruv Jurel becomes a certainty in such a scenario. 

Rishabh Pant could play the 4th Test as a specialist batter. pic.twitter.com/brIaXHLu7O

— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) July 21, 2025

India's probable playing XI for the Old Trafford Test:

KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudarshan/Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (vc), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Anshul Kamboj. 

2. Seizing the crucial moments

India need to fasten up their fielding and avoid being slack on the ground. During the first test of the ongoing series at Headingley, Leeds, the visitors dropped the English batters an astonishing seven times. Of these seven occasions, the left-handed opener, Yashasvi Jaiswal, stationed at the slips or in the gully region, let go of the grip of the ball on four chances. One among those dropped catches proved to be extravagantly costly as Ben Duckett, after that reprieve, smashed a match-winning 149 runs to help set the foundation of England's record chase of 371 runs. Also, batters need to bat with greater responsibility and not let their hard work go in vain. They must convert their starts into big scores and relieve the pressure off the batters following them. The bowling has done extremely well, so far, on this tour, and must continue throwing its shots from the armoury. 

3. Breaking the Mental Stigma

Brushing aside the narrow and agonising loss in the third test at Lord's, India must start fresh and intense. Their test record at the Old Trafford ground, the venue for the fourth game, is not worth a look as they are yet to register a victory there in their nine previous attempts, having lost four and drawn five hitherto. Words shall be hurled at by the Englishmen, but the Indians must stay composed and let their game do the most of the talking. It will be a test of not only the skills, but also nerve, grit, and temperament. The team that plays as a unit might eventually come out of it with flying colours. In a battle that could not be more evenly matched, the margin for errors is minimal, and thus, even the pettiest of faults may become the judging factor of the five-day affair. 

Former India head coach Gary Kirsten has come out in support of Shubman Gill as India’s long-term captain in Test cricket. Gill was handed the reins following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from the format, and while his tenure has started with highs and lows, he has impressed many with his batting form. Despite India trailing 1-2 in the five-match series against England, Gill has amassed a remarkable 607 runs in just three Tests, underlining his class at the top level.

Kirsten, however, believes that leadership goes far beyond individual performances and has emphasized the importance of man-management. “Well, it's early days. I think he's got great potential. Captaincy is a whole lot of things that you've got to put together. He's a great thinker in the game. He's a good player himself. But there's a whole bunch of things you've got to get right. And I think man management is going to play, like any leader,” Kirsten told Rediff.com.

He drew parallels with MS Dhoni’s leadership style and pointed out what Gill needs to emulate. “Dhoni was an incredible man-manager. If he can get that component of his leadership really fired up, I think he has all the credentials to become a great captain for India,” Kirsten added.

Greg Chappell: Old Trafford Test Gill’s Biggest Leadership Test

Echoing similar sentiments, former India head coach Greg Chappell believes the upcoming fourth Test at Old Trafford will be the ultimate test for Gill—not just as a batter but as a leader. “The Old Trafford Test is shaping up to be the biggest examination yet for Gill—not just as a batter, but as a leader. He's learning on the job, but the timeline is not generous. He must bring composure, clarity, and confidence to a side that desperately needs it. And he must do it now,” Chappell said.

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He also highlighted the importance of emotional balance and backing actions with planning. “That doesn't mean he can't show emotion. In fact, his passion on the field at Lord's was good to see. But actions like getting into Zak Crawley's face over time-wasting only matter if they are backed up by the hard work done behind the scenes. A captain earns the right to be loud when he's already done the quiet work of planning, uniting, and inspiring his group,” Chappell concluded.