ENG vs IND: Very satisfied with our preparations, says Dravid ahead of one-off Test

Team India ticked off all the required boxes during the practice game against Leicester ahead of the one-off Test against England, according to head coach Rahul Dravid.

The four-day game at Grace Road ended in a draw on Sunday. Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, and Ravindra Jadeja -- all registered fifties during the game. Multiple Indian players, including Jasprit Bumrah, Shubman Gill, and Hanuma Vihari, played for both sides in the match that turned out to be great preparatory sessions ahead of the rescheduled fifth Test at Edgbaston, Birmingham.

"I think whatever we needed to achieve and whatever boxes we needed to tick in terms of our preparation leading into the Test match on Friday, I think we are very satisfied and happy, we have been able to do that this week," Dravid said in a video posted by Leicestershire Foxes on Twitter.

Asked about the challenges of playing in English conditions, Dravid said: "When you have got just one game or one-off game in a series, its not really a lot of time, you've got to hit the ground running hard and you've got to be able to hopefully get your act together right from the first day of the Test match.

"There is not lot of room to maneuver or things to go wrong. So having said that it has been a good week. I thought the match wicket was challenging on first couple of days and settle down in the last two so, it was good, it was a great week."

The former India captain also praised the facilities and atmosphere at the venue. "I thought you know everyone's really looked after us really well. It's been great crowds you know, it's really lovely to see so many people come to watch the game like this and just the atmosphere and the vibe have been excellent," added Dravid.

Just a few days ahead of the Test, India captain Rohit Sharma tested positive for covid-19. Following that it was reported that opening batsman Mayank Agarwal was being flown to the UK for the one-off Test, which is due to begin on July 1.

Mayank will be allowed immediately to join the Indian Test camp in Birmingham as the UK government has dropped all quarantine mandates. He was initially not picked for the Test after he had managed just 59 runs at 19.66 in two Tests at home against Sri Lanka.

He led Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the IPL, where his team finished sixth. Mayank had a season to forget as he managed just 196 runs at 16.33 to go with a strike-rate of 122.50.

Overall, the opening batsman scored 1,488 runs from 21 Tests at an average of 41.33, which includes four centuries and six fifties.

Last year before the covid outbreak happened in the Indian camp, the visitors were 2-1 up with the fifth Test yet to be played. A win in the series would mark India's first Test series triumph in England since 2007.

After the rescheduled Test, the focus will turn to the six-match limited-overs leg with the first T20I scheduled to be played on July 7 at The Rose Bowl, Southampton.