England’s expectations of a “good surface” for the inaugural Test against India beginning on Friday are high owing to the unusually dry weather, which will complement the England squad’s aggressive style of cricket. Stating this on Wednesday, Leeds head of grounds Richard Robinson said, “England just want to have a good surface. So they can hit through the line of the ball. That’s what they are really looking for.”

As a practice that the hosts have mostly been following, Leeds generally organises a Test in the middle of a series. But choosing this venue for the opening game has grabbed a lot of attention.

Robinson said he expected the Headingley pitch to help pacers on the opening day before slowing down due to heat. He said a batting surface would suit England as well the inexperienced Indian batting line-up.

Following the retirement of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, K L Rahul is the seniormost player in the Indian team led by Shubman Gill. Shubman will have a point to prove in bettering his mediocre record against South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia. The Indian batting line-up is also bolstered by the presence of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who is on his first tour of England with the senior team, and Karun Nair, who had played his last Test match in 2017.

While India had arrived at Leeds on Monday for pre-match practice, England also had a busy training session.