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India vs England First T20I Preview: Visitors looking to regroup

By Sridhar Bhamidi

10 Mar 2021

Sridhar Bhamidi 10 Mar 2021

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India host England in Ahmedabad at the Narendra Modi Stadium for the first T20I on Friday
Both teams are level 7-7 in the T20Is so far with the record 3-3 in matches played in India
India have won 10 of their last 11 completed T20Is
England have won 13 of their last 16 away T20Is including 5 in a row
Dawid Malan has gone past 20 in 5 of his last 6 T20Is

Can Kohli and India script another win over England? (Getty Images)

India bounced back in spectacular fashion to win the four-Test series 3-1 and underline their home supremacy against England. The scene now shifts to the T20Is, where the teams and stories are completely different. The first of the five matches will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday.

With this being the T20I World Cup year and the tournament set to be played in India, expect the two teams to have one eye on finding their best compositions. That said, there should be no love lost between two fierce sides that pride on being at the top of their game.

India Form

The Indian team is fresh off the Test series success and some of the key players continue to be part of the T20I side. Ranked no. 3 in the ICC World T20I rankings, India come into the series on the back of a 2-1 win down under. The lone loss to Australia in that series happens to be India’s only loss in the entire 2020 – winning the remaining nine!

KL Rahul, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Shreyas Iyer will be itching to go considering how crucial a good start can be for their prospects. Rishabh Pant, who has been India’s batting hero from the Tests, could be set for an audition.

India News

Virat Kohli will have a number of tough choices to make in selecting his final XI. Pant could be chosen as the regular ‘keeper, while the likes of T Natarajan, Varun Chakravarthy, Rahul Tewatia, and Navdeep Saini could miss out for a variety of reasons.

England Form

England were all over the place facing India’s spinners in the last three overs. Thankfully, the white ball team is a completely different entity and will look to forget the scars of the Test series.

Eoin Morgan has won more than 60% of the matches he has helmed as captain, and will be their lucky charm. Then of course they have Dawid Malan, the world’s top-ranked T20I batsman. Bowling will be dependent on Chris Jordan and Adil Rashid.

England News

Jofra Archer could miss out this match as his shoulder continues to be a problem. Mark Wood could fancy a recall, while Sam Curran is also in the squad.

India vs England Head-to-Head

India and England are tied 7-7 in H2H matches, with the score reading 3-3 in matches played in India. Talk about teams starting on equal footing!

India vs England Match Up

Both teams have some quality matchwinners, which make this an interesting game to look forward to. India will be the favourites if the pitch takes turn. Regardless, with the firepower on display in this match, expect some big shots all around the park. England will fancy their chances considering the change of format and their T20 specialists.

India vs England Stats

India have won 10 of their last 11 completed T20Is, including 2 which came via a ‘Super Over’.
The chasing side has won 10 of India’s last 13 completed home T20Is.
Virat Kohli needs 72 runs to become the first player to score 3,000 runs in T20I cricket.
Yuzvendra Chahal’s 6/25 in the last match between these sides in India remain his personal T20I best.
England have won 13 of their last 16 away T20Is including 5 in a row.
Dawid Malan has gone past 20 in 5 of his last 6 T20Is and averages 53.43 in 19 matches.

Prediction

T20s are a completely different ball game and England will be banking on their specialists to lift their game. India have a lot of questions to answer in selection, and England will hope to take advantage. The visitors have greater firepower, although spin could once again be king. Malan and Chahal could be safe individual picks, while England could edge out India on the sixes count.

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