England vs India 2018: Combined Playing XI

Middle Order

Cheteshwar Pujara

Solid Pujara needs to be a bit more consistent

Cheteshwar Pujara was dropped from the 1st Test of the series, however, since his return, he played a couple of solid innings including a 72 runs innings in the third Test which India won by 203 runs and bettered it in the next match with a hundred which helped India to take a slender lead in the first innings. He scored 278 runs in the series at an average of just under forty and will take No. 3 spot in the combined XI.

Virat Kohli

Kohli buried all those demons of the past with his emphatic batting

This was an automatic and the easiest of choices as Kohli played as a man possessed, scoring 593 runs in the ten innings at an average of 59.30.

The only innings he couldn't perform was in the last innings of the series where he got out for a golden duck. Otherwise, he was largely responsible to hold an otherwise underconfident Indian batting lineup.

Joe Root (c)

Joe Root led his team fabulously to win the series

Root had an average series by his standards with the bat, however, he still performed well whenever his team required him to. He scored one half-century and a century and ended the series with 319 runs (3rd highest for England). He is also selected as the captain of the side as it was one department where he looked better than his Indian counterpart with regard to team combination or reading the pitches.

Jos Buttler (Wk)

Jos Buttler was certainly the crisis man for England

Jos Buttler had a breakthrough series in a sense as he displayed how well he can handle the pressures of Test cricket batting with the tail. He was England's highest run-getter (second highest among both the teams) having scored 349 runs from nine innings.

He played some brilliant knocks and forged many match-winning partnerships with the tail. He will also keep the wicket for this combined XI as no other keeper could make a mark, except for Pant in the last innings, however, keeping the balance of the team in mind, Pant couldn't make it to this combined XI.