After a mediocre performance in the opening Twenty20 International, India and England would shift their focus to the second T20I, scheduled to be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday. While India would aim to bounce back, England would eye another win to stay in the driver's seat.The opening ODI saw the Indians getting battered by eight wickets while their batting unit completely misfired, barring Shreyas Iyer. Nonetheless, known for being comeback kings, India would aim for another turnaround and eye a 4-1 win in the series, as it aims for the top spot in the ICC T20I Rankings. Meanwhile, we present the preview for the second game.
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Current formAs for the current from, England is unbeaten in its past eight T20I series, thus rightfully being the top T20I team. Meanwhile, India, too, is unbeaten in its past seven T20I series, as this series is sure to get exciting in the remaining matches.
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Team composition and combinationConsidering the teams, India has a batting-heavy unit. Although its line-up failed to click in the opening game, skipper Virat Kohli has enough options to try with. As for its bowling, although the resources are limited, it is still a top attack on all fronts and does not really need to be messed with.England also has a batting-heavy squad, which was commendable in the last game, while its bowling attack was effective. Interestingly, the pacers got the most success, as skipper Eoin Morgan would be eyeing the same line-up.
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Injury concernsTeam India has a couple of injury concerns, with uncapped spinner Varun Chakravarthy failing the fitness Test. Meanwhile, pacer T Natarajan missed out on the opening game as he wasn't yet fully cleared following an undisclosed injury. Nonetheless, if cleared, he could make it for this game. As for England, although pacer Jofra Archer returned to the side for the opening match after recovering from his elbow injury, he isn't fully fit yet and could miss out on this game.
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Head-to-headAs for the head-on clashes between the sides, of the 15 games, England has won eight and India winning seven. In India, they have played on seven occasions, with England winning four and India winning the remaining three. Simultaneously, in Ahmedabad, this would be the second game between the two, with England having the upper hand.
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Weather and pitch reportThe weather in Ahmedabad would be hot again, as the temperature is likely to be around 38 degrees, with no chance of rain. The track could be slow, but runs can come if played in the right way. Expect a score of around 160-180.(Image courtesy: BCCI)
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Probable XIIndia: KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli (c), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul ThakurT Natarajan and Yuzvendra Chahal.England: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan (c), Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Jofra ArcherTom Curran, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid and Mark Wood.
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Fantasy XIBatsmen: Roy, Iyer (c) and Pandya- Jason Roy proved his worth as a prolific opener and is sure to continue with his form. The middle-order would be duly supported by Iyer and Pandya, who were promising in the last game, while the former is the skipper.Wicketkeeper: Rahul and Bairstow- Rahul, unfortunately, failed to fire in the last game, but being the top T20 batsman, he is likely to come in handy in this match as an opener. Bairstow sprung back to form with the bat as an opener and is being backed to do it again.All-rounders: Sundar and Stokes- Among all-rounders, Sundar has been in reliable form in all departments and would be highly effective come Sunday, dut supported by Stokes, with the latter being a no-brainer.Bowlers: Chahal, Archer (vc), Wood, Rashid- Chahal is a must-have since he is India's most effective spinner in the format and supported by Rashid in the department. Among pacers, Archer and Wood seem to be in deadly form and would once again give the batsmen a tough time, with the former being the vice-captain.
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Match detailsDate and day: March 14, 2021 (Sunday)Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, AhmedabadTime: 7 PM (IST)Where to watch (TV): Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 1 Hindi (Also available in HD, along with regional languages)Where to watch (Online): Hotstar
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