England were 90 for the loss of 2 wicket a little after lunch on the opening day of the first Test match against India at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium at Chepauk in Chennai.
Earlier, England Skipper Joe Root won the toss and chose to bat first. India picked Shahbaz Nadeem and Washington Sundar for the game.
The visitors made four changes from their last Test against Sri Lanka two weeks ago. Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer returned after being rested for that series, while Rory Burns and Ollie Pope have also been included in the squad.
This game marks the return of international cricket in India after a year-long COVID-19 break. India played the last test match before the pandemic against Bangladesh on 22nd November 2019 at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
Both teams enter the contest on the back of away series wins in the longest format of the game. India have beaten Australia 2-1 to win the Border-Gavaskar Trophy while Joe Root’s England defeated Sri Lanka 2-0.
The four-match series gets interesting as its result will decide the second finalist of the ICC World Test Championship, who will face New Zealand at The Lord’s in June 2021.