Currently, the Indian cricket team is standing at the second position in the ICC T20I rankings, while England is down at No.4. But in English conditions, the difference in rankings seems to be small, however, Team India is having a lead of 1-0 in the three-match series. The second T20I could well be a close encounter.
However, Team India defeated England in the first T20I where Kuldeep Yadav claimed a fifer, and KL Rahul scored a magnificent century against the hosts England at Old Trafford (Manchester) on Tuesday. England was restricted to meager score of 159/8 in 20 overs while India reached their target in 18.2 overs after losing only their both openers.
English batsman Jos Buttler is in particularly good form, hitting a half-century in the first game, while their top-order didn’t perform as per the expectations.
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The good thing for India is that they have the best of the team to pick from. A batting unit comprising of Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Suresh Raina, Manish Pandey, MS Dhoni, Dinesh Karthik and Manish Pandey is a formidable one in any part of the world.
India also has a solid fast bowling attack led by Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Siddarth Kaul, Hardik Pandya, the all-rounder, and Deepak Chahar, who is yet to make his T20I debut. There are spin options in Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, and Krunal Pandya too, and it might be tricky for the team management to leave players out.
On paper, India is the superior team. But England is looking forward to coming hard on men in blue as well, especially after facing a demoralizing loss in the first game.
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In the T20I cricket history, they have met 12 times out of which both the team has won equal no. of games (6). India’s team combination is expected to be the same as the last game, especially after witnessing the dominating performance in the series opener. Kohli seems to be coming at no. 4 again, in order to give ample time in the middle for Rohit, Shikhar, and Rahul. However, during the post-match presentation of the first T20I, Virat hinted that they are looking to have a flexible line-up.
In the bowling department, with Jasprit Bumrah and Washington Sundar getting injured, Bhuvneshwar, Chahal, and Kuldeep make the direct entry, while the fourth place is expected to be filled by either Umesh of Kaul as both had a decent outing against Ireland.
India’s predicted T20I XI against England:
Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (c), MS Dhoni (wk), Suresh Raina, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Kuldeep Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal.
