India and England are gearing up for the third Test match, scheduled to be kicked off from 15th February at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot. With the five-match series currently poised at 1-1, both teams will be eager to gain the upper hand in what promises to be another thrilling encounter between both teams.

Heading into third game, India have been subjected to face distressing challenges as they will be without the services of their two key players, KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer. KL Rahul, who has been in exceptional form recently, will be missed at the top of the order, while Iyer's absence in the middle order leaves a void to be filled. 

Announcing the squad for the remaining three Test matches, India had included KL Rahul into the squad, but was later ruled out of the Rajlot Test following an injury. About Shreyas Iyer, he had not been included into the squad for the remaining three games. 

In the face of challenges, India boast a glitzy lineup with the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and Ravindra Jadeja. India would expect these players to step up to fill the gap left by Rahul's absence, while the team management might give opportunity to newly inductee Sarfaraz Khan to make his debut. 

On the other hand, England will be poised to bounce back strongly, having lost the second game to allow India to assert themselves in the series. England secured an emphatic victory in the first game. With the series levelled 1-1, they will be determined to maintain the momentum and put pressure on the Indian team. This Test match will also mark the 100th Test outing for England skipper Ben Stokes.

Ahead of the game, like always, England have named their playing XI for the third Test with Shoaib Bashir making the way for seamer Mark Wood. 

India Probable XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Yashavi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, KS Bharat (wk), Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar

England Probable XI: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Mark Wood, James Anderson