India v England third Test predictions and cricket betting tips

Where to watch India v England

TNT Sports 1 from 4am Thursday

Best bet

England to win third Test
1pt 11-4 general

James Anderson top England first-innings wicket-taker
1pt 11-4 Coral, Ladbrokes

India v England third Test predictions

India made it 1-1 in a captivating Test series courtesy of a 106-run win in Visakhapatnam earlier this month but England will sniff an opportunity to bounce back in Rajkot.

England recorded a shock 28-run win in the first Test in Hyderabad but failed to add to their advantage.

An inspired knock of 209 from Yashasvi Jaiswal and a total of nine wickets from Jasprit Bumrah led India to a comfortable win last time out but there is every chance England can win the third Test.

Virat Kohli is still unavailable for the series hosts and his absence cannot be underestimated, while KL Rahul is also ruled out and Shreyas Iyer has been omitted because of poor form.

That means India's batting lineup could have a different look to it in the third Test with uncapped pair Sarfaraz Khan and Devdutt Padikkal both vying for a middle-order spot.

Ravindra Jadeja's return is a boost to the bowling department but England have so far coped well with India's spin with Ravi Ashwin's economy rate up at 4.08 in the series.

A relatively green pitch is expected in Rajkot so this could be another match which favours the pacemen over the spinners and, while Bumrah could again profit, that is generally good news for England.

The hosts are once again impacted by player absences and England certainly held their own with bat and ball in the second Test.

Their tail even started to wag in the second innings with scores of 36 from wicketkeeper Ben Foakes and bowler Tom Hartley, and England have once again adopted their 'Bazball' philosophy without going overboard.

Ben Stokes and company will genuinely feel they have a great chance to become the first team in 12 years to win a Test series against India on their own patch and at 11-4, they look worth backing to prevail in the third game.

The likely conditions in Rajkot could prompt a change of approach from England, who are likely to deploy two seamers, according to vice-captain Ollie Pope.

That would probably see one of either Ollie Robinson or Mark Wood join the attack but primary paceman James Anderson looks the man to keep an eye on.

Anderson was brought in for the second Test and was one of England's best performers, taking five wickets in two innings in Visakhapatnam.

The veteran bowler has taken 39 wickets overall in India and looks the obvious option to be England's highest wicket-taker in the first innings with main spinner Jack Leach once again absent and Hartley still in the infancy of his Test career. 

Click for more free bets and betting offers from the Racing Post

Commercial notice: This article contains affiliate links. Offers are handpicked and come from operators our experts have first-hand experience of. Opening an account via one of these links will earn revenue for the Racing Post, which will be used to continue producing our award-winning coverage of horseracing and sports betting.