The Rohit Sharma-led India will now focus on finding the right combination for the ICC T20 World Cup when they play the second T20 International against England in Birmingham on Saturday.
With Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravindra Jadeja set to feature in the T20I squad from Edgbaston, the second T20I is expected to see a lot of changes in India’s playing XI.
If India decide to retain Deepak Hooda, Kohli could open with skipper Rohit Sharma in place of Ishan Kishan, who has been consistently doing well at the top.
Apart from Kohli, Pant, Bumrah, Jadeja and Iyer have also joined the T20 squad after the break after the fifth Test. Jadeja is a similar replacement for Axar Patel and his inclusion makes the batting unit more solid.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been very impressive with the new ball and Bumrah is expected to accompany him. Arshdeep Singh made a successful start but since he is not part of the squad for the next two matches, Umran Malik may get more chances.
Hardik Pandya had a game to remember both with and with the ball and his presence is certainly a big boost for the team in the World Cup year. Rohit would also like to see a significant improvement in the team’s fielding, especially taking catches after a modest performance on Thursday.
England, who were blown away by the visitors in Southampton, will back themselves to make a strong comeback. They rely heavily on skipper Jos Buttler, who will be keen to improve after his first-ball duck. Power-packed batting including Liam Livingstone and Jason Roy failed in the first game but count on them to come good in an essential game.
India vs England 1st T20 Probable Playing XI:
India playing XIRohit Sharma (capt), Ishan Kishan, Deepak Hooda, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Axar Patel, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh/Awesh Khan/Umran Malik, Yuzvendra Chahal
England Playing XI: Jos Buttler (c/w), Jason Roy, David Malan, Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, Phil Salt, Harry Brooke, Sam Curran/David Willey, Richard Gleason, Chris Jordan/Reece Topley/Tymal Mills, Matthew Parkinson
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