India, Aug. 1 -- With the series hanging in the balance, India opted to leave out Jasprit Bumrah for the fifth and final Test at The Oval, a decision that raised eyebrows given the green-tinged surface. However, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate explained that the management was honouring a pre-series agreement with the pace spearhead, who had made himself available for only three of the five Tests in England.

"It's quite a complex issue around Bumrah," Doeschate said after day one's play in London. "We obviously want to wheel him in, but we also want to respect where his body's at, and on the basis of that, we just felt that it wasn't worth including him in the squad."

India have used Bumrah strategically this series; he played in the...