No Place For RCB's Phil Salt, Jos Buttler At 3; England's Probable XI For 1st T20I vs WI

Salt to miss WI T20Is, Buttler likely to bat at 3 [Source: @RcbianOfficial, @iamAhmadhaseeb/X]

On Friday, England will take on West Indies in the first T20I of the upcoming three-match series. The high-voltage clash will be played at the Riverside Ground in Chester-le-Street.

Led by Harry Brook, England enjoyed stellar success in the ODI series, emerging victorious by a clinical margin of three-nil. However, the T20I series presents a different challenge altogether, with West Indies having a number of potential match-winners in their squad. 

Thus, as England gear up for the crucial face-off, let's see what could be their combination for this match. 

Buttler, Jacks, Duckett To Form A Fearsome Top Order

(Buttler and Duckett's stats in T20Is)

The swashbuckling Ben Duckett and Jos Buttler will likely continue as England's top-order batters. These two cricketers walk straight into the playing XI, having slammed 412 and 3535 runs, respectively, at blistering strike rates in the shortest format.

Meanwhile, there will be a toss-up between Jamie Smith and Tom Banton to fill the void of Phil Salt, who is on a paternity leave. Having said that, England might consider opening the batting with Will Jacks and keeping Jamie Smith in the middle order. 

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Brook Likely To Form Middle Order Core With Smith And Bethell

(Brook and Bethell will be England's key players in middle order)

Liam Livingstone has been sidelined from England's T20I setup for his poor returns in recent times. He could be replaced by Jacob Bethell, his first-choice alternative as a batting all-rounder. 

Bethell and Jamie Smith could be England's core players in the middle order alongside skipper Harry Brook. Bethell recently played as England's number six batter in the ODI series, scoring a flamboyant fifty in the first game. 

Meanwhile, skipper Harry Brook could stick to his number four position where he has smashed 276 T20I runs at a superb strike rate of 156.82. 

Luke Wood Could Be In; Carse, Mahmood, Rashid To Spearhead Bowling Attack

In Jamie Overton's absence, the onus will be on Brydon Carse to step up as a seam-bowling all-rounder. Besides scalping wickets at crucial junctures, Carse can be handy with his lower-order hitting. 

Meanwhile, Luke Wood might be included, courtesy of his left-arm angle and ability to swing the new ball up front. In the recently held PSL, Wood was impressive for Peshawar Zalmi, bagging eleven wickets across eight matches. 

Veteran cricketer Adil Rashid will be England's first-choice spinner, while Saqib Mahmood is expected to fill Jofra Archer's void as a hit-the-deck seamer. 

England's Probable Playing XI For 1st T20I vs WI

Ben Duckett, Will Jacks, Jos Buttler (WK), Harry Brook (C), Jacob Bethell, Jamie Smith, Liam Dawson, Brydon Carse, Luke Wood, Adil Rashid, Saqib Mahmood

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