India vs England, 2nd T20I: Preview, probable XIs, match prediction, live streaming, weather forecast and pitch report
India take on England in the second T20I of the Paytm T20I series on Sunday, 14th March, at the Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad.
England romped to a comprehensive victory in the first T20I, doing so with eight wickets and 27 balls to spare. Winning the toss and electing to bowl first, the visitors were relentless on the field and with the bat as well. England seemed to have got their team selection and tactics spot on.
Electing to play three front-line pacers, two fast-bowling all-rounders and one spinner in Adil Rashid, England had tremendous flexibility. Archer, Mark Wood, and Chris Jordan were pretty good with their line and lengths, inducing errors from the rather rusty-looking Indian batsmen.
With the exception of Shreyas Iyer, none of the Indian batsmen stayed long enough at the crease to make an impact. Their final total of 124/7 was never going to be enough against the power-packed English lineup. The England openers came out with all guns blazing, racing to 50/0 after the powerplay overs to effectively end the game as a contest.
While a lot of focus was on India's slightly inexperienced bowling lineup, it was their batting that let them down in the first T20I. Virat Kohli will need to get back into form before the important international fixtures this year, while KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya need to get over their rustiness.
India have been pretty good at making comebacks, and they'll look to come back strongly in the second game and restore parity in the series.
Match Details
Date: March 14, 2021 (Sunday).
Time: 07:00 PM (IST), 01:30 PM (GMT).
Venue: Motera Stadium, Ahmedabad.
Weather Report
It should be another great day for playing cricket, with no rain interruptions expected. The weather is likely to be pretty warm on matchday, with an average temperature of 34 degrees celsius. Once again, dew is expected to be there in the second innings.
Pitch Report
The wicket is a pretty balanced one, which was evident in how it played during the second innings of the first game. It was two-paced on occasion, but for the most part, it had good carry, pace and bounce, while also being conducive to turn.
Predicted XIs
India
India aren't expected to make too many changes to the team they played in the first T20I and are likely to allow the players time to get into their stride. However, they might elect to play Navdeep Saini as their third front-line pacer, seeing how successful Mark Wood and Archer were on the wicket instead of Axar Patel.
India: KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli (C), Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK), Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel/ Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Yuzvendra Chahal.
England
England should field the same playing XI as they did in the first T20I. They'll be really pleased to see Jonny Bairstow's return to form.
England: Jos Buttler(WK), Jason Roy, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow/ Sam Billings, Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan(C), Sam Curran, Mark Wood, Chris Jordan, Jofra Archer, and Adil Rashid.
Match Prediction
India should read the wicket better and make some better plans for the second game. Considering they have a great home record, the hosts should bounce back and level the series.
Prediction: India to win.
TV and live streaming details
TV: Star Sports Network.
Live Streaming: Disney+ Hotstar VIP.