England Tour of India 2020-21: Joe Root says England will have to bring its best

India would be locking horns with England in a four-Test series to defend the Anthony de Mello Trophy, as the series gets underway from February 5. India is coming off a historic win in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, while England is having a terrific outing in Tests, in Sri Lanka.

As India comes off a historical performance in the just-concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy, it would now shift its focus to the four-Test series against England, at home, to defend the Anthony de Mello Trophy. Meanwhile, England is currently involved in a two-Test series in Sri Lanka, as it leads 1-0.

However, judging by India's current form, it is the favourite to retain the title against England. Furthermore, English skipper Joe Root has already warned his side that it needs to be at its absolute best to stand any chance of a win against India.

"It was a fantastic series to watch from start to finish with some brilliant cricket played. India showed great fight, character and resilience and depth in their squad for guys to come in and perform the way they did. As a cricket fan watching Test cricket, it was a great advert for the game, and for us going out to India, it makes that tour even more exciting now," Root said, reports PTI.

"I expect India to be full of confidence. They are a very good team and know how to get the best out of their conditions. We are going to have to be at our absolute best, but that is an exciting prospect for us. We will be going there to fully expect to win that series - but we have a lot of hard work to do before we get there (with the second Test against Sri Lanka)," added Root.

England expects to have prominent players like Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer in their squad against India, as they have been rested for the ongoing Lanka tour. "Those two guys coming back into it would give the squad a huge boost and it's certainly the case for us. We (will be) excited to see them back in and around the squad. Hopefully, they are full of energy and ready to go when they get here," he concluded.