As the traditional venue for the final Test of an English summer, the Oval has played host to many a farewell. Don Bradman ended his career there with a second-ball duck in 1948. Two years ago, an emotional Shane Warne completed his final Ashes tour by walking off to a bittersweet chant of “We wish you were English”.

There remained life in the great wrist-spin bowler, just as there will be in Sachin Tendulkar and his veteran colleagues beyond Monday. But with India’s next Test series in England scheduled for 2011, it is unlikely that Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Sourav Ganguly, V. V. S Laxman and Anil Kumble will play a five-day match there again.

By any definition of the word, Tendulkar has been a great batsman. Dravid is not far behind, while the wristy Laxman has been a player of great innings. Ganguly’s priceless legacy to his country was visible in their resolve not to be bullied by England in the second Test at Trent Bridge. Kumble, another fierce competitor, is their leading wicket-taker.

All five are significant figures in the history of the game and while the majority of the sell-out crowd at the Oval will be hoping that England can avoid a first home series defeat in six years, they will be happier still if these illustrious opponents enjoy a few hours of elegant run-scoring before losing the match.

If Tendulkar, 34, is playing in four years’ time – as Dravid hinted mischievously rather than convincingly – he will be in his fourth decade at the highest level, having made his debut in 1989. Over four tours to England he averages 64.15 (against an overall figure of 55.05), scoring hundreds in 1990, 1996 and 2002.

Dravid and Ganguly, both touring for the third time, also boast higher mean figures in England than over their careers. It suggests, as Dravid said yesterday, that India players draw inspiration from their visits to England. “The grounds here are all steeped in history,” he said. “Everywhere we feel we are following in the footsteps of special players. The pitches are interesting because they are different to those in the rest of the world, the Test matches are well attended and the crowds are very knowledgeable. We feel relaxed in England.”

Dravid has particularly happy memories of the Oval because he scored 217 at the ground five years ago. Tendulkar, Ganguly and Laxman also scored 145 between them in a total of 508. India were good value for a draw and will be delighted with a similar result this time.

Squads

England (from): M P Vaughan (Yorkshire, captain), A N Cook (Essex), A J Strauss (Middlesex), K P Pietersen (Hampshire), P D Collingwood (Durham), I R Bell (Warwickshire), M J Prior (Sussex), C T Tremlett (Hampshire), S C J Broad (Leicestershire), R J Sidebottom (Nottinghamshire), M S Panesar (Northamptonshire), J M Anderson (Lancashire).

India (from): R Dravid (captain), K D Karthik, W Jaffer, S R Tendulkar, S C Ganguly, V V S Laxman, M S Dhoni, A Kumble, Zaheer Khan, S Sreesanth, R P Singh, Yuvraj Singh, R R Bose.

Umpires: S A Bucknor (West Indies) and I L Howell (South Africa).

Third umpire: P J Hartley (England).

Match referee: R S Madugalle (Sri Lanka).

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