England cricketers pay visit to Dalai Lama's residence in McLeodganj ahead of final Test against India

In a bid to infuse tranquility into their mindset ahead of the final Test against India, the England cricket team took a detour for some spiritual renewal ahead of the final match in Dharamsala.

A group of six England players, including Jonny Bairstow, Zak Crawley, Dan Lawrence, Ollie Pope, Tom Hartley, Gus Atkinson, and assistant coach Marcus Trescothick, paid a visit to the Dalai Lama's residence in McLeodganj on Wednesday, March 6.

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England look to end the India tour on a high

The team was no doubt seeking inspiration before taking on the field for one last time in the series. England had won the first Hyderabad Test after India made a roaring comeback to go 3-1 up. But the visitors still hope to end the tour on a high. Such visits to seek blessings and solace have become a customary ritual for touring cricket teams in India.

The fifth Test promises to be a memorable occasion, with both Bairstow and Indian spin wizard Ravichandran Ashwin playing their 100th Tests for their respective countries. England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bat first, making one change to his lineup with the inclusion of express paceman Mark Wood in place of Ollie Robinson.

India too rang in a couple of changes, bringing back the speedster Jasprit Bumrah to lead the attack in place of Akash Deep, while handing a debut Test cap to Devdutt Padikkal, who comes in for Rajat Patidar.

England won the toss and elected to bat first, the first innings witnessed a commendable effort from the English batsmen, led by Zak Crawley's resilient knock of 79 runs.

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However, the crafty bowling of Ravichandran Ashwin (4/51) and Kuldeep Yadav (5/72) posed challenges, restricting England to 218 runs in their first innings. Indian batters have started well in their first innings with almost the 1st Day's play at the end the hosts are batting on 74 without losing any wickets.