ENG vs IND | Plenty of questions to be answered by Rohit Sharma and Co

After being blown away by the English batting in the fifth Test, team India will look to get one back on the hosts in the three-match T20I series. Captain Rohit Sharma’s availability for the limited-overs series has been a big boost for the Men in Blue. 

Meanwhile, Jos Buttler has taken over the reins as the white-ball captain after Eoin Morgan’s International retirement.

Rohit Sharma and the Indian team management will look to address a few problems in the three-match series, with the T20I World Cup just around the corner. The first T20I will feature a second-string Indian side, with the refreshed senior players taking charge from the second T20I. 

Sometimes, a plethora of options make things a lot more complicated. This is the case with the Indian middle-order batting, as a number of combinations and permutations could be worked up here. 

Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik and Hardik Pandya are all candidates to occupy the number four or five batting spots. 

The England series should be used as a starting point to gain a clear picture in terms of the batting order. Then, perhaps, the time for experimentation has come to an end, and it is high time that the team starts preparing for the T20I World Cup.

Dinesh Karthik’s unexpected re-entry into the Indian T20I squad and Rishabh Pant’s poor white-ball form have given the management yet another headache. 

It will be interesting to see if Dinesh Karthik gets the nod over the southpaw, given that there is a slot for just one of them in the playing 11. 

On the one hand, Pant can win you games on his day with his aggressive style of play, whereas Dinesh Karthik adds experience and is an in-form batter.

IPL 2022 showed us how effective Hardik Pandya could be in the middle order. The Gujarat Titans scored 400-odd runs and played a few crucial knocks from the number three or four position. 

It will be interesting to see how the visitors utilise Hardik Pandya, whether they stick with him as a finisher or do they promote him higher up the batting order. 

In all fairness, Virat Kohli has been hitting new lows with easy passing series. Once considered among the untouchables, the former skipper’s place in the T20I side could be under heavy scrutiny. 

Suryakumar Yadav has time and again proved that he is more than capable of taking up the number three batting position. Moreover, Deepak Hooda scored a stunning ton in the second T20I against Ireland, coming in at one down. 

A failure in the second T20I for Kohli could mean either Yadav or Hooda getting the nod.

Yuzvendra Chahal has undoubtedly been impressive in sub-continental conditions, but there are a few doubts regarding his effectiveness in SENA countries. 

The wrist spinner could manage to pick up just one wicket in the three-match T20I series in England a couple of years ago. This will be a big test for Chahal, who has to prove his credentials in overseas conditions.