The first of the five-match T20I series between India and England will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday. After a pulsating Test series, India and England will be locking horns with each other once again, albeit in the shortest format of the game. With an eye on the ICC T20 World Cup later this year, both teams will look to zero in on their best teams for the marquee tournament.

England comes into the series after a stunning performance in South Africa. With a perfect balance of having youngsters and veterans, the visitors start the series as the marginal favorites, despite the hosts having a stellar record at home.

Meanwhile, Virat Kohli and his men have a lot of food for thought, especially with their batting unit. With a couple of spots up for grabs, the Indian team management will want to come with a fix without compromising on a win in the series. Although India will be missing the services of Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s return will bring much-needed experience and skill in the death overs.

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Both teams look evenly matched on paper, although England will favorite in the series owing to their superior depth and balance. However, India isn’t pushovers by any means and will also fancy their chances of starting the series with a win. With both the teams looking to start the series on a winning note, a riveting contest could possibly beckon on Friday.

India

Shikhar Dhawan will make way for India’s returning vice-captain Rohit Sharma, and KL Rahul will be opening along with the deputy skipper, confirmed Indian skipper Virat Kohli on the eve of the game. In the middle of a purple patch, Rishabh Pant has earned his comeback, which leaves a two-way battle between Shreyas Iyer and uncapped Suryakumar Yadav for the No. 4 position. On the bowling front, Varun Chakravarthy has failed his fitness test and will miss the series, while there are doubts over the availability of Rahul Tewatia as well.

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Washington Sundar will form the spin pair with Yuzvendra Chahal, but India will be thinking of including Axar Patel as well if the conditions favor a spin-heavy attack. Bhuvneshwar Kumar could be in line for a comeback with T Natarajan also tending to a niggle at the NCA in Bengaluru, and hence not available for at least the series opener. This leaves a three-way battle between Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, and Navdeep Saini for the two remaining slots.

Probable XI: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer/Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur/Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Navdeep Saini/Axar Patel

England

England has a full-strength squad to finalize the playing XI and is likely to go with their best XI for the opening match. As was the case in South Africa in November, Jason Roy and Jos Buttler will be expected to open with Dawid Malan and Jonny Bairstow at three and four. However, the team management will be mulling over the inclusion of Sam or Tom Curran but it is the left-arm variety of the younger brother Sam who might get the nod.

Probable XI: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, Adil Rashid