India v England: Ollie Robinson and Shoaib Bashir get the nod as England opt for height advantage in Ranchi

The surface in Ranchi was described on Wednesday by Ben Stokes as “like nothing I’ve ever seen before” 48 hours before the start of the Test, with cracks running down one side of the cut strip.

After a second inspection on Thursday alongside head coach Brendon McCullum and selector Luke Wright, England captain Stokes elected to keep faith with two seamers as Robinson partners James Anderson.

Robinson and Bashir are both well over 6ft and the bounce they can extract has earned them the nod over skiddier pair Mark Wood and Rehan Ahmed as England look to hit back from a heavy defeat in Rajkot.

“We get asked about the pitch and we give our opinion but that doesn’t mean we are going in with too many preconceived ideas,” said Stokes ahead of play starting earlier this morning. “The pitch could be as flat as a pancake, who knows?

“If it is, we will adapt to that. We do like to look at the pitch two days out and one day out, because that’s how we like to pick our XIs.

"Looking at that, I think there is going to be assistance for spin.

“But I think also it looks like someone like Bash, who releases the ball from such a high release point, the extra bounce that he gets we feel is going to bring us more into the game.

“I also feel having two seamers gives us a good chance purely because of Ollie Robinson’s release height and his relentlessness with his areas.”

The selection of Robinson, who has not played competitively since the third Ashes Test in July, and evergreen Anderson may lessen the need for Stokes to resume his career as a fully-fledged all-rounder.

Despite reporting no soreness after a 35-minute spell of bowling full tilt on Wednesday, Stokes remained coy about if he would give his side – trailing 2-1 in the five-match series – another seam option.

“I’ve pulled up really well,” added Stokes.

“It’s another step forward for me in terms of the ball. As keen as I am to get there, I do have to be very sensible about it.”

Bashir took four wickets in his debut for England in the second Test in Visakhapatnam before bring dropped in Rajkot but he partners slow left-armer Tom Hartley as the tourists’ two main spinners.

That means no room for Ahmed, who played in the first three Tests and took 11 wickets at an average of 44, although Stokes insisted the young leg-spinner’s absence was no reflection on how he had been performing.

“He’s gone out and tried everything that we’ve asked of him,” explained Stokes.

“The way in which he has taken the game on with the ball is something I’ve been very, very impressed with.

“I think he’ll take a lot of learnings out of these three games, which will only help progress his career, rather than not being the person who bowled in that situation, if that makes sense.”

Despite bowling 38 overs in the 434-run loss in Rajkot and just four days’ rest between the end of the third Test and start of the fourth, Anderson retains his spot in the starting line-up.

Anderson needs just four more wickets to become the first fast bowler in history to reach 700 in Tests and Stokes marvelled at the 41-year-old’s professionalism and longevity.

“If you’re a young fast bowler, Jimmy Anderson is the one person who you want as your role model,” added Stokes.

“Not only the amount of wickets he’s got but the fact that he can keep going at his age.

“Even saying that he’s approaching 700 Test wickets as a fast bowler is incredible.

"He’ll know that but I don’t think that will be at the top of his mind for this week, just because of where we’re at in this Test series.”

India, meanwhile, played down England’s surprise at the pitch ahead of the crunch fourth encounter and captain Stokes’ “interesting” remarks.

Cracks running down one side of the cut strip are expected to offer turn and variable bounce but India batting coach Vikram Rathour insisted there is nothing unusual about the wicket.

“Every time we play in India, there are question marks about the pitch,” insisted Rathour.

“It’s a typical Indian wicket, there are cracks, this wicket always had cracks.

“It will turn, but how much it will turn and from when we are not sure.”

While England were happy to have announced their starting XI, India opted to wait until the toss to name their side.

They must make at least one change from the impressive win in Rajkot after deciding to rest fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah.