Fantasy Tips
ENG vs IND (1st Test) – Probable Xi Predictions
By CricShots - Aug 3, 2021 10:02 pm
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England will be locking horns with Team India in the opening game of the 5-match series scheduled to be commencing on Wednesday, 4th August, at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. The match will be live on Sony Six, Sony Ten3, and Sony liv app from 15:30 IST. Both the visitors and the hosts should be well-rested ahead of this tour. The members of the Indian Test contingent stayed on in England post the conclusion of the World Test Championship final.

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India registered a phenomenal series win against England

After being released for a couple of weeks, the Indian team regrouped at Durham for a period of training that included a three-day practice match against the County Select XI. Skipper Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, and Rishabh Pant all missed that match because of various reasons. However, KL Rahul made the most of the opportunity a case for his inclusion to the Test side with an unbeaten 101* in that game, keeping wickets in Pant’s absence.

On the other hand, England played their last competitive game in a 3-match ODI and T20I series against Pakistan. Their last foray in Test cricket was against New Zealand, where they suffered a 1-0 loss in a two-match series. The performances of Rory Burns and Ollie Robinson emerged as positives from the series.

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England has a relatively full-strength squad for this series, although they’ll be missing the services of some crucial players like Ben Stokes and Jofra Archer, who’s still recovering from his elbow surgery. With both teams aiming to find the right balance in their teams amidst some injury issues, this series should prove to be a spectacle for quality cricketing entertainment. Having said that, there is no denying the fact that the fans can expect an exciting start to the much-awaited series.

England

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England team

Without the all-around prowess of Ben Stokes, England will be in a dilemma of finding the right balance. Against New Zealand in June, when Stokes was also absent, they picked four pacers and left out Jack Leach and that is the most likely choice here. Alternatively, they could pick five bowlers, including Leach, but would be affecting the batting. Ollie Pope is a doubt with a quad injury and if he is ruled out, Jonny Bairstow is set for a recall.

Probable XI: Rory Burns, Dom Sibley, Zak Crawley, Joe Root (c), Ollie Pope/Jonny Bairstow, Dan Lawrence, Jos Buttler, Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood, Stuart Broad, James Anderson

India

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Team India dominated England in the second Test

India may end up with a largely similar team to what they finished in the series 1-4 on these shores in 2018. KL Rahul, who ended that tour with a century, is a likely candidate for a surprise return as an opener to the opening slot alongside Rohit Sharma.

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India has played five bowlers in each of their last four overseas Test matches, a ploy they are likely to continue unless they perceive conditions to be extreme enough to warrant an extra specialist batsman at the cost of a bowler. If not, Ravindra Jadeja then could make way for another seamer with India’s two-spinner attack failing to perform well in similar conditions at the World Test Championship final.

Probable XI: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul/Hanuma Vihari, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohammed Siraj/Shardul Thakur, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah

Fantasy Suggestion 1:

Jos Buttler, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (C), Joe Root, Ravichandran Ashwin, Sam Curran (VC),  Jasprit Bumrah, Stuart Broad, Mohammed Shami, and James Anderson

Fantasy Suggestion 2:

Jos Buttler, Rishabh Pant, Rohit Sharma, Joe Root, Virat Kohli, Rory Burns, Ravichandran Ashwin, James Anderson, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, and Stuart Broad