England vs India: 3rd T20I, Preview- Can India recollect themselves to maiden T20I series win in the nation?

England know what are India's strengths and will want to keep them devoid of any advantage.

Published - 07 Jul 2018, 21:52 IST | Updated - 07 Jul 2018, 21:52 IST

2 Min Read

Prior to the last match, the Indian spinners played on England’s mind, especially Kuldeep Yadav, who wrecked havoc in their batting lineup. They introduced Merlyn, a bowling machine, in order to counter the Chinaman and it somewhat worked. Kuldeep went wicketless and Alex Hales guided his team home after the Brits were pushed back courtesy of some immaculate piece of bowling.

Following a lacklustre show in Manchester, England would be happy that they drew level in the series. The Men in Blue, on the contrary, need to regain their composure before they take the field at the County Ground in Bristol. Virat Kohli and his boys are yet to win a T20I series on English soil. More precisely, the Blue Army has only won one out of their five T20I matches in the country.

Meanwhile, the hosts will be concerned about their batting for the reason that they have had their travails in the last two matches. The team may also face some selection conundrum as one of their top players in Ben Stokes has returned to the squad following his jaw-dropping knock versus Yorkshire in Leeds. The weather is expected not to play spoilsport in the decider.

Toss: India won the toss and elected to bowl first

England (Playing XI): Jason Roy, Jos Buttler(w), Alex Hales, Eoin Morgan(c), Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, David Willey, Liam Plunkett, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Jake Ball

India (Playing XI): Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Lokesh Rahul, Virat Kohli(c), Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni(w), Hardik Pandya, Deepak Chahar, Umesh Yadav, Siddarth Kaul, Yuzvendra Chahal

Team Combination

England

The Brits are likely to persist with the same lineup. One change they can make is the inclusion of Stokes in place of Jake Ball. The top order doesn’t deserve to be tinkered with. Jason Roy, who threatened in both matches, need a significant score under his belt. Rashid is the lone spinner in the lineup. David Willey and Liam Plunkett’s role will also be crucial in the initial overs.

India

A loss is unlikely to force India to make any alteration. The likes of Dhawan and Rohit will be keen to find some form and carve a useful opening partnership, something which Virat’s men lacked in the first two encounters. The middle-order looks more or less settled. Chahal needs to step up. The onus will also be on Umesh Yadav and Deepak Chahar to restrict the batsmen.

Players to watch out for

Jason Roy- England

He has played a couple of quick-fire knocks of 30 and 15, but Morgan’s troops would want him to play a longer inning. He treads an unflinching approach, however, need to blend the same with caution. He prefers to sit on the backfoot, which can be understood from his penchant to cut and pull. Virat & Co. would be aware of his shortcomings and will like to remove him at the earliest.

Shikhar Dhawan- India

The last two matches haven’t been joyful for the opener. After being castled by David Willey, he perished to a bizarre run out in Cardiff. He played an impressive knock in Malahide and is in requisite of a big score under his belt. The left-hander would also be keen to find his rhythm back before the ODI series which starts in a week’s time.

Stat Attack

300 – Suresh Raina needs one more maximum to complete 300 sixes in his T20 career so far. He will become the second player after Rohit Sharma to reach the milestone.

5000 – Alex Hales (4967) need 33 more runs to complete 5000 T20 runs.