England Playing 11 for 5th Test vs India: Mark Wood Returns, Jonny Bairstow Set For 100th Appearance

Mark Wood returns and Jonny Bairstow set for 100th appearance in the longest format as England aim to salvage a consolation victory against India in the fifth Test, scheduled to start on Thursday (March 7) in Dharamsala.

The speedster Wood comes in as a like-for-like replacement for Ollie Robinson, who makes way after a wicketless outing last week on his competitive comeback in Ranchi, where India moved into an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series.

Wood replacing Robinson is England's only change to their playing 11 as they persist with two spinners in Tom Hartley and Shoaib Bashir despite the conditions likely to favour pacers at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium on the foothills of Himalayas.

Bashir - alongside Robinson - missed practice on Wednesday (March 6) due to an upset stomach but it is not thought the issue will stop him from playing in 24 hours' time. England may use skipper Ben Stokes as the third pace bowling option if required.

Meanwhile, middle-order batter Jonny Bairstow will make his 100th Test appearance. The 34-year-old, who made his Test debut in 2012, will become the 17th English player to reach the milestone. Earlier in the series, Stokes also played his 100th Test.

If selected, Indian off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin will also make his 100th Test appearance, becoming the 14th cricketer from the country to achieve the feat in the red ball format.

Bairstow has scored 5974 runs including 12 centuries and 26 fifties at an average of 36.42 in his 99 Test appearances so far. He, however, has not had a great outing in this ongoing series, scoring just 170 runs across 8 innings with the best of 38

England Playing 11 for 5th Test vs India

Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (captain), Ben Foakes (wicketkeeper), Shoaib Bashir, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson.