ENG vs IND: India's predicted playing XI for 2nd T20I

India continued their impressive performance under their returning skipper Rohit Sharma, as they hammered England in the first T20I to go 1-0 up in the three-match series. The Men in Blue ticked all the boxes in the series opener and were superior to the hosts in all aspects of the game at The Rose Bowl in Southampton.

Ideally, the Indian skipper wouldn’t want to make any changes to the squad that performed diligently in the series opener, but the return of Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, and Ravindra Jadeja to the squad for the remaining two matches, will prompt a few changes in the second T20I at Edgbaston.

Let’s look at India’s probable playing XI for the 2nd T20I against England:

Openers: Rohit Sharma(c) and Ishan Kishan

Rohit Sharma was looking in great touch in the first T20I before he was sent back to the hut by a sharp delivery by Moeen Ali on the score of 24. The graceful opener dispatched five boundaries in his brief innings and is keen on making a mark on this series after his prolonged absence from the game.

Ishan Kishan, on the other hand, was sluggish in his first outing of the series and did not leave much of an impression. The southpaw has been in decent form after struggling in the early stages of IPL 2022. With the likes of Shubman Gill and Prithvi Shaw waiting for a chance on the sidelines, Kishan will like to make a strong case for his selection to the team.

Middle-order: Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant(wk)

Virat Kohli’s struggles in recent times are no secret to the cricketing world, but the former Indian captain brings a lot more to the table than just his primary batting role. His presence on the field is a welcome addition for Rohit and co, and while he has struggled in red-ball cricket, he has five 50+ scores in his last ten appearances in T20Is for India.

Suryakumar Yadav has slowly established himself as one of the mainstays of the limited-overs team with his exuberant batting skills. The attacking batter enhanced his reputation with a quickfire 39 off 19 deliveries in the first T20I and seemed to enjoy the pace and bounce of the English pitch.

Rishabh Pant will be making his return to the T20I side after his breathtaking batting display in the fifth Test in Birmingham against England. The southpaw led the Indian team against South Africa in the five-match T20I series, which finished 2-2 after the fifth match was washed out but his show with the bat was horrible.

All-rounders: Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja

Hardik Pandya is probably the first name of the teamsheet and deservingly so as he has continued his great form in the T20 format after a scintillating IPL 2022 campaign. The all-rounder was at his mercurial best in the series opener against the hosts, as he scored his maiden half-century for the Indian team, following it with a four-wicket haul in the second innings.

One of the heroes for India in their defeat at the hands of England in the rescheduled fifth Test, Ravindra Jadeja is likely to make a return to the team in the second T20I. He will be replacing Axar Patel, who has not been effective in his recent outings. Jadeja missed the T20I series against South Africa as he was recovering from an injury that cut short his IPL 2022 campaign.

Bowlers: Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal

Harshal Patel has slowly established a starting berth in this competitive team after a series of compelling displays in IPL 2022 and an impressive run in the South Africa series. The medium-pacer is a bit too much to handle for the batters with his variations, especially his trademark off-cutters. The Bangalore man might prove to be a vital cog for India in the T20 World Cup later this year.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar once again displayed his bowling prowess with the new ball as he had the English batters bamboozled with his swinging deliveries in the first T20I. The 32-year-old set up the English skipper Jos Buttler with a terrific inswinger after a series of outswingers to Jason Roy. 

Kumar is likely to be accompanied by his long-time opening bowling partner Jasprit Bumrah in the second T20I as the fast bowling sensation makes his return to the T20I side after the fifth Test. Bumrah was rested for the previous two limited-overs series against South Africa and Ireland.

Yuzvendra Chahal’s revival with the national team is going from strength to strength as the leggie was once against at his deceptive best in the opening T20I. The diminutive bowler has scalped 11 wickets since his return to the T20I side and continues to trouble batters with his canny bowling.

India’s predicted XI for the second T20I: Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal