England likely to recall pacer Ollie Robinson for fourth Test against India in Ranchi

Ollie Robinson is likely to get some game-time in the ongoing tour of India after all, with England reportedly considering the pacer for the fourth Test in Ranchi that gets underway from Friday.

The Sussex bowler, who had featured in the Test series against India at home in 2021, has been warming the bench and ferrying drinks so far in the tour. England had picked Mark Wood in the XI for the first Test in Hyderabad and replaced him with veteran seamer James Anderson in the second Test in Visakhapatnam. The visitors would then pick both for the third Test in Rajkot, in which they suffered a 434-run thrashing at the hands of Team India, their second-heaviest defeat in Tests in terms of runs.

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According to ESPNCricinfo, England captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum are reportedly considering bringing Robinson into the XI for the fourth Test that takes place at Ranchi's JSCA Stadium, and resting Wood. They will also have to take a call on whether to continue with Anderson, who is four wickets away from becoming only the third bowler in Test history to go past 700 wickets, or bring in an extra spinner in offie Shoaib Bashir, depending on the conditions.

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England skipper Stokes could also return to the all-rounder's role by sending down a few overs in Ranchi after having played as a batter for the most part in recent fixtures. Should that be the case, the visitors can afford to stick to one specialist pacer and shore up the spin department.

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England currently face a must-win scenario heading into the fourth Test in Ranchi. While they had pulled off a remarkable victory in Hyderabad despite conceding a 190-run first innings lead, India would bounce back in Vizag with a 106-run victory to level the series. The Englishmen would then suffer an even worse defeat in Rajkot, where they were bowled out for 122 after being set an improbable 557 to win.