After three players sustained injuries, India's preparations for the fourth Test against England in Manchester ran into a significant obstacle on Sunday. Two of those players have almost been eliminated from the tour. The Old Trafford Test, which will begin on July 23, will be a do-or-die match for the tourists, who are currently down 1-2 in the series after losing the third game at Lord's.

Earlier last week, a ball struck Arshdeep Singh, a left-arm fast bowler, in the nets, requiring him to get stitches on his hand. According to The Indian Express, he may need up to 10 days to recuperate, which means that he is unlikely to be considered for a place in the XI for the fourth Test and that his return is also unlikely for the series finale at The Oval, which begins on July 31. According to reports, the selectors then brought in Anshul Kamboj as a backup.

The same report also mentioned that Akash Deep, the other pacer who took a record 10 wickets in India's 336-run victory in Birmingham, is still doubtful for the game in Manchester due to a groin niggle he suffered during the third Test.

The Hindustan Times later stated that all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy sustained an injury during practice in the gym on Sunday. After that, he had scans done, which showed major ligament damage. He has also been almost excluded from the tour.

What is the current state of India's lineup for the Manchester Test?

The fourth Test will be a tough one for selection because of a triple blow of injuries, combined with questions about Rishabh Pant's availability following his finger injury at Lord's.

To fill the void left by the injured Nitish, India is expected to bring back Shardul Thakur into the starting lineup. Before being dropped, the Mumbai all-rounder participated in the series opener in Leeds last month. In that match, he only scored four runs and grabbed two wickets.

Since Akash's injury, the discussion about Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj's workload has been in disarray. Siraj will accompany Bumrah, who has been chosen for the fourth Test, which is all due to the Bengal fast bowler's injury. But if Arshdeep is out with an injury, India may select Harshit Rana to take Akash's place. Prior to the game in Headingley, the Delhi speedster was a late addition to the Indian team as a result of his performance in his India A tour match.

Giving Kuldeep Yadav his debut match of the tour is another option. Given that the XI already has two spinners—Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja, both all-rounders—this would be a highly expected move by the management, but it would leave India vulnerable in the speed area. Head coach Gautam Gambhir is unlikely to budge on replacing one of the spin-bowling all-rounders with a specialized leggy since that is his template.

Giving Kamboj his first cap is the third option. His performance in the two India A games and his performance during the previous Ranji Trophy season were both outstanding. However, the fact that Harshit was India's first choice as a backup pacer in the team may bring up the issue of hierarchy.

After publishing a video of his training session on social media with the caption "If calm had a sound, it would be this," Pant put all the speculation about his injury behind him. During a practice session prior to the Manchester game, the vice-captain, who was replaced by Dhruv Jurel for keeping duties in both innings of the Lord's Test, was spotted participating in fielding drills, playing football, and even practicing his batting in the nets.

The anticipated XI for India's fourth Test against England: Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shubman Gill (c), Karun Nair, KL Rahul, and Yashasvi Jaiswal.

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