Cheteshwar Pujara (278 runs, 39.71 average)

A tough choice to choose between Cheteshwar Pujara and Jonny Bairstow,  but Pujara got the nod since he played consistently at Number 3 right throughout the series while Bairstow, after the Lord’s Test, Jonny was consistently struggling. After the horrors of 2014, Pujara put in a better performance in 2018, scoring his first ever century on English soil at Southampton, an unbeaten 132 that helped India take the lead in the first innings.

He will hopefully carry this confidence into the future overseas tours against Australia and New Zealand and put in a better showing there.

Joe Root (319 runs, 35.44 average)

English skipper Joe Root started off the Test series with a gritty knock of 80 in the first match. However, his graph went down since then and has struggled with his consistency. Although he got off to some notable starts, he threw his wicket away at times and has also made a wrong call with the toss in the third Test.

But, in the final innings of this series, he notched up his 14th Test hundred and scored at a brisk pace. Alongside Cook, he stitched a wonderful partnership which helped England get into a commanding position in the fifth Test. He ended the series with 319 runs in 9 innings at an average of just over 35 and will be leading this best XI.

Virat Kohli (593 runs, 59.3 average)

The Indian skipper Virat Kohli is one of the choices to make while selecting this best XI. If the world in 2014 was speaking about Kohli and his weaknesses outside the off-stump, they will now be discussing his improvements in the same area and amassed 593 runs in the series to emerge as the standout performer with the bat from both sides.

India will want more of such exploits when they tour Australia in November later this year.