IND vs ENG 1st ODI: Fan2Play Fantasy Cricket Tips, Prediction, Playing XI and Pitch Report

Match Details

The first game of the three-match ODI series between India and England will be played at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on 23rd March 2021.

The match will start at 1:30 PM IST. The live streaming of the game will be available on the Hotstar app.

Preview 

After the closely-fought T20I series, India and England are now set to face each other in a short three-match ODI series. The two teams have not played in a 50 overs match since their clash at the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, where England emerged victoriously. This series is part of the ICC ODI Super League 2020-23. England has played two series so far in the competition, winning one against Ireland at home and losing one against Australia. This is will be their first series overseas, while it will be India’s first at home. Virat Kohli and his men failed to win their series down under, losing it 2-1. 

As far as the last bilateral series between these two teams are concerned, it was played in 2018 in England, when Eoin Morgan’s men had successfully got on top of the Indian team. However, England’s ODI record in India in the past couple of decades haven’t been quite good. The World Champions would be looking to re-write that. In addition to that, this tour has produced more results in favour of Indians, who have won both the Test and T20I series. 

England would want to return with some fond memories from this series. The pitch in Pune will also be suitable to England’s style of play as it provides a surface ideal for batting. This series could be a high-scoring one, considering the power-hitters in both teams. 

Probable Playing XIs

India

Predicted XI: Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer/ KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya/ Washington Sundar, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur

England

Predicted XI: Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Billings, Eoin Morgan (c), Ben Stokes,  Jos Buttler (wk), Moeen Ali, Tom Curran, Mark Wood, Jake Ball, Adil Rashid

Captaincy picks: 

Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli’s numbers in the Test series against England were looked into and analysed as the player was not in form. However, as soon as the T20Is started, he turned around his fortunes. He scored three unbeaten fifties, two of which were in match-winning causes. He would be expected to continue his good form into the format, which he loves the most and averages close to 60. 

Jason Roy

The English opener is one of their most consistent performers in white-ball cricket over the past few years. He has played some really good cricket as far as opening the innings in white-ball cricket is concerned. He averages over 40 while his strike rate is more than 100. In the T20Is, he seemed to be in some good form but failed to get a big score under his name. In this series, he would be expected to build on an early start and get a huge score for his side. 

Fan2Play Fantasy Cricket Tips

2-Player Team

Virat Kohli(C), Jason Roy

3-Player Team

Hardik Pandya, Virat Kohli, Jos Buttler (C)

4-Player Team

Jos Buttler (C), Krunal Pandya, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jonny Bairstow

11-Player Team

Rishabh Pant, Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow, Rohit Sharma (c), Virat Kohli (vc), Hardik Pandya, Ben Stokes, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur, Mark Wood

Disclaimer: This team is based on the understanding, analysis, and instinct of the author. While selecting your team, consider the points mentioned and make your own decision.