Latest updates from the 4am GMT start in DharamsalaStokes keen to finish on high amid India’s Himalayan peaks
Hello and welcome to live coverage of the fifth and final Test between India and England in Dharamsala. This is a match with a split identity: a dead rubber; a celebration of Jonny Bairstow, Ravichandran Ashwin and Jimmy Anderson; a source of World Test Championship points; a travelogue with a bit of cricket chucked in; and, given the exceedingly chilly conditions, a warm-up for the county season.
One thing it’s not, alas, is a series decider. India’s mighty comeback in Ranchi gave them an unassailable 3-1 lead, and they are strongish favourites to win this game. England’s young bold soldiers probably don’t deserve to lose 4-1, but then nor did India when they toured England in 2018. No team has ever batted so aggressively against India in India, and a win in Dharamsala would make this … not a moral victory, let’s not go there, but maybe a qualified triumph. As Brendon McCullum said in rather different circumstances at Lord’s last summer, 3-2 has a nice ring to it.