Team India started off their campaign in England with a resounding victory in the opening T20I at Old Trafford. Riding on a brilliant piece of bowling by Kuldeep Yadav, India managed to restrict England to a manageable score of 159 runs.
Kuldeep became the 1st ever left-arm wrist spinner to bag a five-wicket haul in international cricket in England. KL Rahul then smacked a breathtaking century which ensured India reached the target with nearly two overs to spare.
He carried on from where he left in the IPL and during the lone match against Ireland. Rahul thrashed the English bowlers all around the park and looked in total command of proceedings. His unbeaten knock of 101 off 54 deliveries studded with ten fours and five hits over the fence. The English bowlers were pretty ordinary and couldn’t quite stall the Indian run flow.
However, the home team bounced back quite strongly in the 2nd T20I by winning the clash by five wickets and with a couple of deliveries to spare.
The victory was built mainly around some exceptional bowling performance by Liam Plunkett and David Willey. With the bat in hand, it was Alex Hales who played a stunning knock of 58 runs which eventually sealed the match for the home team.
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England batted Kuldeep quite well in the 2nd T20I
England played Kuldeep with caution and in his final over, as Jonny Bairstow smashed him for a couple of sixes which proved to be a killer punch for the hosts.
The two sixes helped England reduce the target to 23 of the final three overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled a sensational 18th over conceding just three runs.
However, Alex Hales struck an important boundary off Umesh Yadav. Hales eventually smashed a six of the first delivery off the final over and added a four to eventually finish the match.
Batting against the wrist spinners will be crucial for England, as the series progresses. The way they applied themselves and played to their strengths against Kuldeep showed they are ready to take the fight to their opposition. Yuzvendra Chahal bowled well, but the English batters played him out and conceded just a wicket to him.
The Men in Blue should be confident of winning the series especially after putting up an energetic show in the opening encounter.
Rahul should try to build his innings rather than going for extravagant shots from the outset. They will look to play to their potentials and try to clinch the series today.
Team Combinations
England
The home team won’t change with their winning combination. Jake Ball will continue to be part of the playing XI for the decider.
Predicted XI: Jos Buttler (wk), Jason Roy, Alex Hales, Joe Root/Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan (c), Jonny Bairstow, Adil Rashid, Liam Plunkett, David Willey, Chris Jordan, Jake Ball
India
The visitors are unlikely to change with their combination despite the defeat in the previous game. Some of the experiments which they have been doing should continue.
Predicted XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli (c), MS Dhoni (wk), Suresh Raina, Hardik Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav
Stats and Trivia
Rohit Sharma is just 14 runs away from amassing 2,000 runs in T20I cricket. Only Virat Kohli had achieved the feat among Indian players.
If India loses the final T20I, it will be the first time India will lose a three-match bilateral T20I series. The Men in Blue have a 7-0 record in three-match bilateral T20I series.
They have never lost a final match of the series when it comes to the shortest format.
38 more runs between Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma will ensure that the pair gets past the record of David Warner and Shane Watson, as the most successful pair in the shortest format.
India had never played a T20I in Bristol. However, they have won all the three ODI matches they have played at the County Ground in Bristol.
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