The first ODI between India and England will be taking place at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Tuesday, March 23. After a pulsating T20I series in Ahmedabad, the players will be looking forward to playing the action shifts to Pune for three ODIs between India and England. The hosts have triumphed in both the Test and T20I series and will be looking to repeat the trick in the ODIs as well.
Although Virat Kohli and his men aren’t in the best of forms in ODIs losing both their last two series, the presence of bonafide stars such as Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan will be giving them some confidence, and the home advantage will also play a crucial role. With their bowling attack also finding their feet in the T20I series, hopes are high among the Indians. Their opponents, England, will be looking to salvage some lost pride with a strong showing in the ODIs.
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With the ICC T20 World Cup just a few months away, the English would want to familiarize themselves with the conditions. There aren’t many new faces from the squad that featured in the T20Is, although there are certain chances of Liam Livingstone can get a chance in place of Joe Root, who is unavailable for this series.
The Indians are the favorites heading into this series, although world champions England can’t be taken lightly in any given situation. With the likes of Virat Kohli and Eoin Morgan taking center stage over the next few days, we should be in for another cracking series between India and England, this time in the ODIs.
Here are some fantasy XI predictions for the game:
Wicket-Keepers
Jos Buttler seems to be a better pick as he has been known for making a strong comeback and he will be much more effective on pitches in Pune. However, for India, Rishabh Pant will be keeping the wickets as he is known for playing match-winning knocks, but in order to maintain the balance of the Fantasy XI, Buttler seems the better pick.
Batsmen
Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Jason Roy, and Eoin Morgan have always been the prime contenders for fantasy cricket. Even, Shikhar Dhawan also is added in fantasy cricket and that will depend on the balance of the squad. Apart from them, there are some useful batsmen in the line-ups as well, like Shreyas Iyer, Sam Billings, and Suryakumar Yadav.
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All-rounder
There are some really reliable all-rounders in both teams but citing the pitch in Pune, Hardik Pandya, Moeen Ali, and Ben Stokes seems to be the perfect fit. Apart from them, the good all-rounder for fantasy cricket is Sam Curran.
Bowlers
Both the teams don’t have decent bowling line-ups but they don’t have practiced a lot. Bowlers like Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Mark Wood become the obvious choices for the Fantasy XI on the dusty track at the MCA Stadium. Apart from them, some crucial bowlers can be like, Kuldeep Yadav, Reece Topley, and Adil Rashid.
Fantasy Suggestion #1: Jos Buttler, Rohit Sharma, Eoin Morgan, Jonny Bairstow (c), Shreyas Iyer, Ben Stokes, Hardik Pandya (vc), Adil Rashid, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur, and Mark Wood
Fantasy Suggestion #2: KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan (c), Eoin Morgan, Jonny Bairstow (vc), Shreyas Iyer, Ben Stokes, Hardik Pandya, Adil Rashid, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shardul Thakur, and Mark Wood
