India vs England - 1st T20I - Preview

After an impressive win in the Test series, India will look to continue their juggernaut in the T20 format. The Tests were a one-sided affair, but be sure that England will be a hard nut to crack in the T20I series. They’re laced with some of the best players in this format of the game and have not lost a T20I series since India defeated them in 2018. Post that they have played 21 T20Is and have won 16 of them. A series win over India will set them nicely for the upcoming T20 World Cup. Players like Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow, Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Liam Livingstone, Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes are good enough to give a nightmare to an opposition. On their day, each and everyone of them can single handedly win a game for their team. The bowling, however, can be a slight cause of concern. Jofra Archer’s availability is not confirmed, Chris Jordan can be hot and cold, the Curran brothers can break down under pressure. Adil Rashid will be the man England will rest their hopes on.

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Taking about the hosts, they too have been on a roll in T20I cricket. Just like England, they’ve not lost a series since 2018. They’re coming back from 5 consecutive series wins and have won 17 of their last 21 matches. Players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul are some of the best in this format. Bhuvneshwar Kumar will mark his return to the Indian squad after recovering from an injury. It will be interesting to see the combination India will go in with. T Natarajan won’t be available for the 1st match. Varun Chakravarthy and Rahul Tewatiya’s participation is also in doubt. Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar should be their first pick along with Bhuvi while Chahal and Sundar will take over duties of the spinners.

Probable XI India: KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli(C), Manish Pandey, Rishabh Pant(wk), Hardik Pandya, Washington Sunder, Shardul Thakur, Bhuveneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal

Probable XI England: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler(wk), Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan(C), Sam Curran, Tom Curran, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood/Jofra Archer