IND vs ENG - Captains knock by Rohit Sharma as his 100 steers India's charge in Rajkot

What an extraordinary innings it has been from Indian skipper Rohit Sharma, timing his century to perfection against England at the now-renamed Niranjan Shah Cricket Stadium in Rajkot. His standout performance, alongside Ravindra Jadeja, proved crucial following England's strong start that saw India's top order crumble, leaving the scoreboard reading 33/3.

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Despite the fall of wickets at the other end, Sharma remained resolute and reached the coveted three-figure mark. This innings holds particular significance for the Indian captain, who had been searching for form after a series of less impactful scores. This 100, which is his 11th ton comes in 157 balls with an innings having 11 fours and 2 maximums.

Most Test hundreds as an opener for India vs England:

4 - Sunil Gavaskar

3 - Vijay Merchant

3 - Murali Vijay

3 - KL Rahul

3 - Rohit Sharma

At the time of writing, India had amassed 185 runs in 52 overs, losing three wickets — Yashasvi Jaiswal (10), Shubman Gill (0), and Rajat Patidar (5). Sharma and Jadeja formed a formidable partnership of 152 runs, with Jadeja contributing 68 runs. Together, they ensured not to lose any wickets from lunch to tea and added 92 runs in this session.

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Meanwhile, the English side, having lost the toss, capitalized on the opportunity, with Mark Wood dismissing both Jaiswal and Gill in his two overs, while Tom Hartley claimed the wicket of Patidar.

India has two debutants on the side Sarfaraz Khan, and Dhruv Jurel while Axar Patel, KS Bharat and Mukesh Kumar miss out. As for the English side, they have made just one change - Mark Wood has come in place of Shoaib Bashir.

IND vs ENG teams:

India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj

England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes(c), Ben Foakes(w), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson