Ben Stokes contends England have “massively evolved” since last summer’s Ashes and dismissed the notion that losing in India represents a step backwards under his leadership.

England have troubled India but Stokes is facing up to his first series defeat as captain, with Rohit Sharma’s side holding a 3-1 lead heading into the final Test, starting on Thursday in Dharamsala.

Past England teams might have already let their thoughts drift towards the flight home after a long tour but Stokes was adamant this iteration are hungry to finish the series on a positive note.

Indeed, one of the major differences he sees in his side since their last assignment – a 2-2 draw against Australia – is their readiness to do what is necessary to get into the team and keep the spot.

“The individuals and the team have massively evolved on this tour,” he said. “Progression doesn’t always show itself with the results. It doesn’t mean that we’ve gone backwards.

“I think the way in which everyone committed to becoming a better version of themselves from when we last played was quite obvious; everyone’s fitter, everyone was – I don’t want to say more desire – but it was just a really different feel around how we operated from the summer before.

“When you know that you’re part of something special, you want to work your nuts off to keep your place in the team.

“We’ve been on so many India tours, you know what it’s like when you get to an end of a long one that sometimes you start thinking about the end of the game, whereas honestly, I don’t think that anyone is thinking like that because every opportunity we feel at the moment is special to play for England.”

Before training at the picturesque HPCA Stadium on Wednesday, some England players are set to travel around 10km north and visit the Dalai Lama at his home in McLeod Ganj, although Stokes is unlikely to be among the contingent.

He will instead contemplate changes to his line-up and whether to include an extra seamer in the cooler mountain conditions, with James Anderson and Ollie Robinson fit after minor thigh and back troubles.

Stokes, though, insisted the XI would not be predicated on him returning to bowling for the first time since last July and doing so following left knee surgery last November would merely be a “bonus”.

Shoaib Bashir had a cut on his spinning finger tended to at Tuesday’s practice after a mammoth 70-over stint in Ranchi. This type of injury is common for spinners who experience an increase in workload, as evidenced by Moeen Ali’s struggles with the same issue last summer, but Stokes played down any worries.

“He’s probably bowled more in the last two months than he has ever,” Stokes said. “He was fine, he was just starting to feel it but I don’t think there’s any concern there.

“I put that down to him probably bowling more balls here in two months than he has for however long he’s been playing cricket for to be honest.”

Jonny Bairstow keeps his spot in the side despite a quiet series with the bat and will play his 100th Test, a dozen years on from his debut at Lord’s against the West Indies.

“I’m super excited for him and he’s been quite chipper the last couple of days,” Stokes said.

“I’ve been there for a lot of his career. Age-group cricket, I played against him and with him. Obviously we went on to play loads of cricket for England together.

“He’s one of England’s finest all-format batters, he’s done some unbelievable things with the red ball and the white ball.”

Asked about his white-ball intentions this year, Stokes confirmed he would be available for selection for the T20 World Cup in June after inspiring England to glory in the 2022 final in Australia.

“I’ve not even thought about that but I’m available,” he added. “Whether or not I’m in the plans for that is a different thing. But I still want to be part of that team going forward.”

An outstanding century from Dawid Malan and Reece Topley’s eye-catching return put England’s World Cup defence back on track as they hammered Bangladesh by 137 runs in Dharamshala.

The 2019 champions were bruised by a thumping loss to New Zealand in the tournament opener but banked a handsome win of their own to cap their visit to the outer ranges of the Himalayas.

Malan was the architect, rolling out a career-best 140 in 107 balls as he carried England to 364 for nine with a fourth century in his last nine innings.

At one stage they would have backed themselves to post 400, but a flurry of wickets at the back end kept them to a less flashy figure.

It was still their biggest World Cup total on foreign soil and easily enough to get the job done against outmatched opponents who were railroaded by Topley on his recall to the starting XI.

England bolstered their pace attack by swapping out spin-bowling all-rounder Moeen Ali for the 6ft 7in left-armer and it proved an inspired decision as Topley blew away the Bangladesh top order and finished with four for 43.

He took two in two balls in his opening over, clean bowled captain Shakib Al Hasan with a wonderful ball and circled back for the battling Mushfiqur Rahim.

He was the pick of the pack throughout and will take some budging from the teamsheet now.

Bangladesh lost their way entirely with the bat, ambling aimlessly to 227 all out and helping repair much of the previous damage to England’s net run-rate.

Malan was only inked into the starting XI last month, embarking on a compelling run of late summer form just as the selectors were losing faith in the form and fitness of Jason Roy.

A lethargic start against the Black Caps in Ahmedabad did not show him at his best, but the 36-year-old removed any doubt about his readiness with a wonderfully-paced knock.

His first 50 runs came in a hurry, taking just 39 balls, and, after taking 52 more to convert his half-century, he showed off some extra gears by slamming 40 off his last 16 deliveries.

Malan’s ambitious streak was evident from the outset, with two glorious sixes off Mustafizur Rahman the highlight of England’s 61-run powerplay.

The first saw him stoop low enough to engineer a slog-sweep over deep square, a shot requiring equal parts bravery and timing, and the second saw him stand tall and pull hard.

When Bangladesh retreated to spin he took a different method, rarely allowing himself to go aerial, threading his shots into gaps and pulling out a reverse sweep against the steadying hand of Shakib.

He took the lion’s share of a 115-run partnership with Jonny Bairstow (52), who had earlier joined England’s 100-cap club after a presentation from former captain Eoin Morgan and was looking solid until Shakib snuck one into his leg stump.

Malan also outscored Joe Root in the decisive third-wicket stand of 151 that kept England ticking for almost 20 overs.

Root, who emerged alone in credit against the Black Caps thanks to a well-made 77, was calm and controlled again, cutting loose only briefly to reverse ramp Mustafizur for six.

In reaching 82 he moved past Graham Gooch as England’s leading run-scorer in World Cup cricket, easing past his mark of 897.

When Malan departed in the 38th over, after unloading a torrent against Mehedi Hasan, he had left the power-hitters in the middle order a perfect platform of 266 for two.

To score 98 more for the loss of seven wickets was an underachievement, down in no small part to Sofiul Islam, who removed Jos Buttler, Root and Liam Livingstone in the space of nine deliveries.

Despite that, they already had more than enough, with Topley’s new ball showing settling the issue.

Having watched from the sidelines as England took a single wicket last time out, he doubled that tally in his first over.

His fourth delivery swung enough to take Tanzid Hasan’s outside edge and carried to second slip and his second left Najmul Shanto as he sprayed to backward point.

Shakib survived despite misreading the hat-trick ball but was soon undone by something even better, beaten on the outside edge by one that held its line and clipped the top of off.

When Chris Woakes nicked off Mehidy Hasan Miraz it was hard to see a way back from 49 for four and they never really attempted to tackle the spiralling required rate.

Liton Das (76) and Mushfiqur (51) made England work before Woakes and Topley returned to add to their hauls, but the sense of any danger had long disappeared.

Livingstone countered his first-ball dismissal with the bat by producing a first-ball wicket of his own and Adil Rashid opened his account in his 16th over of the tournament.

Bangladesh’s passivity saw them survive almost until the end, but Mark Wood and Sam Curran hit the stumps late on to wrap things up.

Dawid Malan’s superb century did the hard work for England as they racked up 364 for nine against Bangladesh in Dharamshala, a game they hope can kickstart their World Cup defence after a sticky start.

Malan reeled off a perfectly paced 140 in 107 balls at the top of the order, a career-best knock from a man who only inked his name in the first-choice XI a matter of days before the squad was finalised, to give his side their highest ever World Cup total away from home.

The 36-year-old, frequently an afterthought in England’s white-ball revolution but now a leading man in his own right, shared stands of 115 and 151 with Jonny Bairstow (52) and Joe Root (82) as the reigning champions recovered some of their swagger following a nine-wicket thrashing by New Zealand in the tournament opener.

At one stage, with a power-packed middle order queuing up in the dugout, they looked ready to shoot for 400 but their over-exuberance allowed Bangladesh to find a way back in the closing stages.

England lost five for 27 at one stage, but still walked away with a new record total at the HPCA Stadium, with Malan overtaking Indian superstar Virat Kohli’s 127 as the biggest individual score at the ground.

He paced his run perfectly, scoring his first fifty off 39 balls in the powerplay, taking 53 more to convert his half-century and then smashing 40 off his last 16 as he cut loose. With 16 fours and five sixes, it was an eloquent response to critics who worry about his ability as an aggressor.

For Bairstow there was a fifty to mark his 100th ODI cap, handed over in person by his former captain Eoin Morgan in the team huddle, while Root made his second telling contribution in as many games.

He was alone in emerging in credit from the thrashing in Ahmedabad, making a measured 77, and here moved past Graham Gooch’s mark of 897 runs in World Cup cricket.

Liam Livingstone unleashed a six-hitting spree the last time he visited the Himalayan city of Dharamshala and believes it could be the perfect place for England to put their World Cup campaign back on track.

The reigning champions had a stuttering start to their title defence, thrashed by nine wickets after a timid performance in the curtain-raiser against New Zealand, and will be eyeing a much-improved performance against Bangladesh on Tuesday.

The game takes place at the picturesque HPCA Stadium, framed against the backdrop of the Dhauladhar mountain range and sitting 1,500 metres above sea level.

The altitude provides a boost for big-hitting batters, with the ball travelling further in the thinner air, and Livingstone had a chance to test the theory in the IPL earlier this year. He smashed 94 in just 48 balls for Punjab Kings, launching nine sixes along the way.

And, after labouring to an under-par 282 against the Black Caps in their opener, there could not be a better venue for England to rediscover their power-hitting mojo.

“It’s an incredible ground and an incredible place to bat if it’s anything like it was that day,” said Livingstone.

“Conditions here should suit us and the boys are really excited. We want to get over what happened the other day and almost go twice as hard. We want to put on a really good show and get things kickstarted in this tournament.

“Because of the altitude the ball just flies really well here. You can feel it, it makes you more confident to take on the boundaries.

“They aren’t that big anyway and the altitude just makes it better with the power we’ve got in our line-up. It certainly helps as a batter, standing there knowing you can take the fielders on.

“It’s the kind of place you can really set up the back end of the innings and score highly. Personally, I’ve got good memories here and hopefully I can repeat it.”

Despite the remote nature of Dharamshala, an area better known for its proximity to the Dalai Lama’s residence just 10km away in McLeod Ganj, Livingstone is not the only squad member to have played here.

Sam Curran and Jos Buttler have also passed through on IPL duty, while Buttler, Joe Root and Chris Woakes all played in England’s first ever international at the venue in 2013.

England beat India on that occasion, taking seven wickets with fast bowlers, and they are likely to be tempted by an extra seamer this time.

Left-armer Reece Topley was unlucky to miss out against New Zealand and heads the queue to come in, while Gus Atkinson and David Willey also stand by with Moeen Ali’s spot vulnerable.

“It’s a good pitch, with good pace and carry and it can nip around,” Livingstone said.

“It’s probably as English a pitch as there is out here and will probably suit us more than many grounds around the country. Hopefully that can play in our favour.”

The one change England would most like to make, bringing Ben Stokes back in to bolster their middle order, is unlikely to happen as he continues to struggle with a hip problem.

Without him the onus will fall on others to fashion a fitting response to their loss in Ahmedabad and Livingstone insists they are ready to oblige.

He was part of the team that lost to Ireland in the group stages of last year’s T20 World Cup and went on to lift the trophy and is unfazed a single setback.

“There’s no point looking back and regretting. We could have lost by one run or the way we did, either way, we move on,” he said.

“One game doesn’t define a tournament and if you’re going to lose a game like that you’d probably rather it was the first one.

“You can lose games and win a World Cup, we’ve shown that before. The one thing this group does well when we’ve lost a game of cricket is double down on our aggressive approach and we’ve got a chance to do that on Tuesday.”