Team India qualified for the World Test Championship by beating England for the World Test Championship. They will now face New Zealand in the final. Meanwhile, In this article, we will discuss about India’s predicted playing XI for the first T20I against England. Both the teams have named strong squads for the five-match T20I series. They are treating the series as a dress-rehearsal for the World T20 to be played in India later this year.
The BCCI has named a pretty young squad and ones who have performed in the IPL consistently well in the last couple of years. Suryakumar Yadav has finally earned his maiden India call-up after consistent performances in domestic cricket and the IPL. The BCCI has also included players like Ishan Kishan, Rahul Tewatia who also performed well for their respective franchises. Picking the best XI for the five games thus would be a difficult job for the team management.
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India’s Predicted Playing XI For 1st T20I vs England on March 12:
Rohit Sharma
Rohit Sharma picks himself automatically in the playing XI. He was in good form in the Test series and would look to take it to the T20Is as well. Rohit is an important member of India’s T20I outfit and he would like to make use of the series and get some runs in the series and prepare himself for the World T20. The pitches for the T20I series will be different from what they were in the Test series. The ball will come onto the bat quickly making strokeplay easy. That is something, Rohit would look to take the advantage of.
Shikhar Dhawan
Dhawan is only playing the white-ball format for India since the last couple of years. He will partner Rohit Sharma to open the batting for India. The left-right combination keeps maintained and the duo bats together as well. He last played the white-ball series against India and once again will make a comeback in the white-ball series against India.
Virat Kohli
The Indian skipper scored just 172 runs in the Test series against England. He would like to score a lot more as he leads Team India in the white-ball format and returns to his familiar batting position at number three. He is still the highest run-getter for India in T20Is and is closely followed by Rohit Sharma at number two in the list. Close contest expected between those two.
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Suryakumar Yadav
With India having picked a big squad it is expected that the players will be rotated throughout the five-match series. While Shreyas Iyer has been India’s regular number four in T20Is lately, Suryakumar Yadav might be given his T20I cap for India in the first game. He has scored over 1000 runs for Mumbai Indians in the last two seasons and deserves a much-awaited debut.
KL Rahul
Rahul sat out for all the four Tests vs England. With India keeping their options open, KL Rahul might get his chance at number five in the T20Is. The Indian squad is quite flexible and so is Rahul. He has batted at number five in the home series against Australia last year and in the first game, he can slot in at number. This is likely to be India’s top five in the predicted playing XI.
Rishabh Pant
Pant will make a comeback into the white-ball XI after making full use of the opportunities he has got in the Test series against Australia and England. He’s keeping his improvement, he has lost weight and looks nimble on his foot. The five-match series can well be one where he is discovered as India’s white-ball specialist keeper.
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Axar Patel
After tasting success in the Test series, Patel should be given a chance in the T20Is as well. He has been a perfect foil for Ravindra Jadeja in the series so far and with the latter still not available for the T20Is, Axar can well continue doing what he has been doing so far.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Before getting injured, Bhuvneshwar Kumar became a regular feature in the Indian white-ball side. He has been injury-prone since the 2019 World Cup and seemed to have carried a niggle during the IPL as well. He has returned fit after working hard on his fitness at the NCA. He should be one of the pacers in the predicted playing XI. With Jasprit Bumrah set to get married in Goa on March 14-15, he might not play the first game and Bhuvi might.
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T Natarajan
Natarajan made his debut in all formats for India in the series against Australia and he has been again picked for the England T20Is. The only left-arm pacer among all the bowlers, he should make it to the predicted playing XI for the first game. He showed great accuracy and skill in the series against Australia and the England series is an opportunity for him to repeat that.
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Deepak Chahar
Deepak Chahar has been India’s new-ball specialist in the T20Is ever since he made his international debut. He is likely to bowl his four overs up-front when the ball is new and swinging. He has been a good addition to the Indian attack ever since he has started playing for India.
Yuzvendra Chahal
Kohli uses Chahal as a strike bowler. He should be itching to come back to the field after getting married and staying in a bubble himself. He will partner Axar Pate from one end and together they can be a tough proposition for the England batter who have not been able to play spin so good so far in the series.
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