IND vs ENG, 1st T20I – Fan2Play Fantasy Cricket Tips, Prediction, Playing XI and Pitch Report

Match Details

The first game of the five-match T20I series between India and England will be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Motera, on 12 March 2021. 

The match will start at 7:00 PM IST. The live streaming of the game will be available on the Hotstar app.

Preview 

After some riveting Test series between India and England, the action will now shift to T20Is. The two teams have competed well on this tour so far but the scoreline of the Test series might not suggest that. However, it is unlikely that the T20I series will see the England team folding the way they did against the red ball. 

England will welcome their white-ball stars along with their captain Eoin Morgan, who is expected to have an extended Indian tour, with the IPL to follow after this. Along with that, Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid, and Jos Buttler will also be back in the mix, which will boost the team’s morale.

Team India would be confident even though they have a couple of new faces in the T20I side. Captain Virat Kohli has some selection worries in his mind, but at this point, he would have mainly doubts with the middle-order. There are also some tough calls to make but all the players are professionals and regular in the IPL, so there won’t be any issue in adjusting to the conditions. 

Probable Playing XIs

India

Predicted XI: Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shardul Thakur

England

Predicted XI: Jos Buttler, Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan, Sam Curran, Moeen Ali, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Chris Jordan

Captaincy picks: 

KL Rahul

When it comes to T20s, one can always depend on KL Rahul with the bat. He has had some incredible IPL seasons in the past few years and his record while opening the batting in T20Is has also been quite good. He has scored 1542 runs with an average of 44.06 with a strike rate of 144.92. 

Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler is one of the most destructive batsmen in world cricket. He has played in the IPL for several years now and has gained much valuable experience of playing in the Indian conditions. He has also been consistent with the bat opening the innings in T20s. He has scored 1551 runs in T20Is along with a strike rate of 140.36.

Fan2Play Fantasy Teams:

2-Player team

Jos Buttler, Rohit Sharma (C)

3-Player team

KL Rahul (C), Jonny Bairstow, Virat Kohli

4-Player team

Eoin Morgan (C), Hardik Pandya, Jos Buttler, KL Rahul

11-Player team

Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Jos Buttler (VC), Rohit Sharma (C), Eoin Morgan, Virat Kohli, Sam Curran, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Chris Jordan, Yuzvendra Chahal

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.