England captain Ben Stokes won the toss and elected to bat in the third Test against India at Lord’s on Thursday, the pivotal middle match of the five-game Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series now tied 1-1. Both sides made notable bowling changes. India restored pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who sat out the second Test in Birmingham, in place of Prasidh Krishna. England recalled Jofra Archer for his first Test appearance since February 2021, replacing Josh Tongue. The hosts named Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root and Harry Brook in the top order, while India’s line-up features openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and K.L. Rahul ahead of captain Shubman Gill. Play began under clear skies on a pitch described as a good batting surface, offering England a chance to set an imposing first-innings total.