After an exciting Test series which was topsy-turvy for both the sides to say the least, the actual now shifts to the shortest format of the game. India are all set to host England for 5 T20Is. This series promises to be a cracker of a contest as both teams have been in superb T20I form of late. Suryakumar Yadav, Rahul Tewatia and Varun Chakravarthy have all received call-ups to India’s T20I squad, although the latter two are unlikely to feature due to fitness issues. Left-arm seamer T Natarajan is also likely to miss out on this series due to a shoulder injury.England will field a full-strength side for the limited-overs fixtures after some extensive rotation during the Test series that received mixed opinions from players and pundits.Eoin Morgan will lead the side that sees the likes of Jos Buttler, Sam Curran and Dawid Malan return. Both these teams have had great success in white-ball cricket in recent times, and this should be one cracker of a series.
Match Details:
Date:
March 12, 2021 (Friday).
Time:
07:00 PM (IST), 01:30 PM (GMT).
Venue:
Motera Stadium, Ahmedabad.
Pitch Conditions:
The wicket at Ahmedabad should be good to bat on, while also offering some assistance to the spinners. With not much dew expected, captains should bat first after winning the toss.
India:
Rahul’s proficiency in white-ball cricket has been overlooked on occasions, and it’s imperative to note that he is India’s highest-ranked T20I batsman in the ICC Rankings and thus it is inevitable that he will open alongside Rohit Sharm. Rishabh Pant’s tremendous performances over the last couple of months are likely to earn him a recall into the playing XI, and he should don the gloves.Hardik Pandya should be the team’s third pacer alongside Bhuvneshwar Kumar and one of Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar.Axar Patel, Washington Sundar and Yuzvendra Chahal should be the three spinners for India on a wicket that has offered some turn.
India Predicted Playing XI:
KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (C), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur/ Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Yuzvendra Chahal.
England:
England should field a strong side for the first T20I against India. Jos Buttler and Jason Roy should open the batting, with No.1-ranked T20I batsman Dawid Malan set to bat at No. 3. Sam Curran, Chris Jordan and Jofra Archer should be the side’s main pacers, with Ben Stokes offering an additional option. Adil Rashid is the spin bowling option, with Moeen Ali and pacer Tom Curran set to battle it out for the remaining spot.
England Predicted Playing XI:
Jos Buttler(WK), Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow/ Sam Billings, Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan(C), Sam Curran, Tom Curran/ Moeen Ali, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, and Adil Rashid.