England vs India: 2nd T20I, Match Prediction: Who will win the match England or India?

The hosts are unbeaten at the Sophia Gardens with three T20I wins.

Published - 05 Jul 2018, 21:20 IST | Updated - 05 Jul 2018, 21:20 IST

View : 2K

3 Min Read

The first T20I at the Old Trafford in Manchester was comprehensively won by India. England would be disappointed for the reason that they allowed the visitors to get a foothold into the match after their openers blazed away inside the powerplay. Kuldeep Yadav’s wrist-spins turned out to be a massive conundrum for them as the Chinaman ran through the batting lineup without any fuss.

Such was the tweaker’s venom that the Brits brought forth a bowling machine by the name of Merlyn, which was introduced by them in 2005 to counter Shane Warne during the Ashes. Virat Kohli and Co, on the contrary, are at the peak of their confidence and would be keen to win their next match in Cardiff to seal the series. Eoin Morgan’s men can’t afford any mishaps in order to stay alive in the series.

Pitch & Conditions

The pitch is expected to be batting friendly. The hosts won their latest match, an ODI, at the Sophia Gardens versus Australia and over 300 runs were piled from both teams. In T20Is, the Poms are unbeaten at the venue, however, toppling the Blue Army wouldn’t be a stroll in the park.

Team Combination

England

After one defeat, they may not resort to any alteration in their settled combination. Jos Buttler’s role at the top would be crucial while the likes of Alex Hales, Jonny Bairstow and the rest of the batting would hope to make amends for their lackluster show last time around. The onus will also be Moeen Ali and Adil Rashid, their premier bowlers over the last few weeks, to fire on all cylinders.

Predicted XI

Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Eoin Morgan (C), Alex Hales, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Moeen Ali, David Willey, Liam Plunkett, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid

India

Even after the win, India may make a few changes. Bhuvneshwar Kumar was a tad erratic the other night and Siddarth Kaul may be drafted in place of him. KL Rahul and Kuldeep Yadav will be the ones to watch out for. Yuzvendra Chahal wasn’t at par with his fellow wrist-spinner and he needs to contribute as well. Shikhar Dhawan would also like to get some runs under his belt.

Predicted XI

Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (C), Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Siddarth Kaul, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Umesh Yadav