• Home
  • Cricket News
  • Ind Vs Eng 5th T20i Preview Mind Already On World T20 Sides Eyeing Important Series Win

IND vs ENG | 5th T20I Preview: Mind already on World T20, sides eyeing important series win

Onecricket

After England started the T20 series on a dominating note and continued on their merry way to put India on the brink. The hosts bounced back superbly in the fourth game of the series with a clinical performance to set up a decider with little to separate between the teams.

The series has been played with both team managements setting their eyes on the World T20 and preferring a strong preparation going into the premier tournament.

After the last game, England skipper Eoin Morgan welcomed the prospect of playing in high-pressure situations that a series decider between two such teams should offer, in order to have his players accustomed to playing when under the pump.

England bowlers have been at the top of their game throughout the series, and even in the last game where India took the game away from them, they were in it for a considerable amount of time to have the hosts in the lurch. 

In the second T20I, they were not helped by the batsmen who could not rise to the challenges presented by Indian bowlers and ultimately were caught surprised by the belligerence of Ishan Kishan while defending an under-par total. 

Mark Wood has bowled with absolute heat and menace with the new ball to keep the Indian batsmen on the back foot while Archer’s ability to surprise with an awkward bounce from short of length deliveries have only made things difficult for the hosts.

England had started the series with a far stronger batting unit with all players having clarity over the roles they were supposed to play than the bowling department. There were question marks over bowlers backing the aggressive batting line up, and deep into the series, they have come a long way and on the contrary, some cracks have started to appear in the batting unit.

Dawid Malan has batted with a cluttered mindset and has put pressure on the batsmen batting either side of him. Thankfully for England, at least two batsmen around him among Jos Buttler, Jonny Bairstow and Jason Roy have put their hands up to not allow India a major chance.

Him eating up too many deliveries, and the likes of Eoin Morgan and Ben Stokes slotting down the order at number four and five must have opened some sense of doubt about England’s number three who had come into this series as the number one T20 batsmen.

For India, the series has been a mixed bag so far with newer players emerging to showcase their brilliance and fresh energy they can offer, while the seniors have not quite conquered their demons yet.

Rohit Sharma is yet to hit the ground running in the last two games, while KL Rahul, who is enjoying an extended rope at the top of the order has been disappointing, to say the least.  Rahul has looked horribly out of rhythm and may well find himself warming the bench in the last game of the series. However, he will be assured in his mind that the team is not willing to give up on him as of yet, although for the short-term goal of winning the series, he could be axed for an in-form Ishan Kishan.

Rohit decided to walk away from his usual method of finding his feet at the crease before dancing down on his feet to get the scoreboard going, but did not last long enough to leave a sizeable impact.

Virat Kohli has walked the talk on batting with a fearless approach in this series, irrespective of the results. In the third T20 his case was made difficult due to the regular fall of wickets from the other end, while in the last game, his eagerness to take on Rashid proved detrimental to India’s fortunes. However, the intent was there and hence Kohli should not be too disappointed with the way that he departed.

Suryakumar Yadav announced his arrival on the big stage with a big six off Archer and set the tone for India’s dominance while wickets kept on falling from the other end. India should look to carry on from the template set by Yadav in the last game.

In the bowling department, an off-colour Yuzvendra Chahal was replaced by an enterprising Rahul Chahar in the last game, and he ensured to deserve another look in for the series decider for the accuracy he offered to Kohli. Washington Sundar got a real hammering from Roy and Bairstow in the last game and his exclusion can’t be ruled out for Axar Patel who can also bring another dimension to the batting department in the late middle order.

India vs England: Match Details

Match No.-05

Date and Time: March 20, 07:00 PM IST, 01:30 PM GMT

Venue: Narendra Modi Stadium, Motera, Ahmedabad

Broadcast and Live Stream: Star Sports, Hotstar

Pitch conditions

India proved their mettle with the ball in the last game, but still, there is enough evidence available to suggest the team batting first will have a competitive advantage over the team batting second.

India will take heart from their masterful bowling performance in the last game where pacers stuck to the task of bowling cutters which gripped on the surface. India's bowling attack would back themselves to come good once again in the big finale of the series.

England would bank on the combination of Wood-Archer to rattle India while Rashid will be tasked to account for the right-handers slotted in the batting order.

Either side will know the competitive advantages of batting second in the final game, but as the series is a build-up for the preparation of the T20 World Cup, they will be keen to defend a total in the remaining two games.

Team News

India

Ishan Kishan missed the last game due to a niggle and it would be a difficult call on preferring one among him and KL Rahul, who looks far away from his best for the final game of the series. Rahul has the backing of the team management, but his form will be a big concern for the team management against an exuberant Ishan Kishan who has all the flamboyance they are desperately in need of.

Rahul Chahar should retain his place in the playing XI over Yuzvendra Chahal whose bowling must be under the scanner after the barren wicket column and surging economy rate. 

Hardik Pandya has started bowling four overs with immense control over his pace or rather the lack of it in the last two games, and it helps India in playing only five bowlers and stacking up the batting order with one extra batsman. The move is likely to be extended as India are desperate to win the series.

Strongest XI

Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar/Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rahul Chahar

England

Eoin Morgan might be tempted to bring Moeen Ali in place of Dawid Malan in order to bring more balance to the Playing XI as the number three has bee faltering in the series.

There are hardly any signs of changes in the team from the English camp and Indian batsmen will have to be at their toes to attack the trio of Mark Wood, Jofra Archer, and Adil Rashid. However, Tom Curran might get a way into the team in place of Chris Jordan who has been taken to the cleaners by the Indian batsmen.

Strongest XI

Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Dawid Malan/Moeen Ali, Jonny Bairstow, Eoin Morgan (c), Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, Adil Rashid, Chris Jordan 

Discover more

Top Stories
news

We have to carry a ‘match winner’ even if he isn't the fittest guy: Babar Azam on Sharjeel Khan

The Pakistan skipper Babar Azam has finally spoken upon the inclusion of tainted opening batsman Sharjeel Khan in the national T20I side fo the South Africa tour. The talk though is centred on the latter’s fitness instead of his match-fixing wrongdoings. Speaking on the rumours doing the rounds that it was Azam who wanted Sharjeel in the side specifically, the 26-year-old skipper said, “The rumours doing the rounds about team selection ... in my opinion, these matters of meetings are better left inside the meeting. When they are brought out, it's not good.” Saying that it is not a personal call to include a player but one taken on the basis of the team’s requirement, Azam added, "This is not my team, this is our team and it's my responsibility to take the team forward. I understand the goal of selection. The endeavour is to get the best players and I welcome all the new inclusions." Azam, who has captained Pakistan for the last 18 months, feels that ‘Sharjeel can't become a Shadab Khan suddenly’, but that does not mean that he can’t be a part of the side. Singing praises of Sharjeel’s blistering form at display in the recently concluded PSL, Babar said, “We have to carry him. I agree his fitness might not be there yet. But the way he is playing, his form, he can help us. I've played with him in Karachi Kings too. He's one of the best players, he can totally change the game. Yes, he is working on his fitness.” "I'll repeat that he's a match-winner and his fielding is not an issue. He's part of the team and if we back him, it will be beneficial for us," Babar added about the 31-year-old who has played 15 T20Is and 25 ODIs for Pakistan so far. Sharjeel scored 200 runs in five innings in the recently postponed PSL.

news

Sachin Tendulkar credits IPL for India's strong bench strength

Former India batsman Sachin Tendulkar has credited the Indian Premier League for developing a strong bench strength for the side. Tendulkar said that the IPL has helped the current lot to play against some world-class players. The new recruits Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan have stamped their authority with the bat after both the players have notched up individual fifties during the on-going T20I series against England. “Yeah, both Surya and Ishan are ready to play, because you know, I have always felt that IPL’s introduction has helped players,” Tendulkar told PTI. Suryakumar began his innings with a maximum after pulling a short one from Jofra Archer over the fine leg boundary. Tendulkar while mentioning about Surya added that the IPL has created an opportunity for the Indian players to take on the international players and have a better understanding of their game. “With the help of IPL, I mean, yesterday I was watching the game, and Surya was batting and (Jofra) Archer bowled to him and Ben Stokes and the commentator said that it is nothing new for Surya because he has already played against Rajasthan Royals,” he said. “Both Archer and Stokes play for Rajasthan Royals, so it is nothing different and he (Surya) knows what they do and he has played against them already. So, it wasn’t first time,” he added. While Ishan notched up a half-century in his very first outing for India, Yadav scored a fifty in his second match while donning the Indian colours. Both the batsmen have been an integral part of the Mumbai Indians setup in the IPL. The wicket-keeper batsman Kishan who began his IPL career with Gujarat Lions and then made a shift to MI has played 51 matches in the cash-rich league so far scoring 1211 runs at a strike-rate of 136.83. Yadav has played for KKR in the early editions of the league and is now a part of MI line-up. Surya has played as 101 matches in the IPL and has scored over 2000 runs at a strike-rate of 134.57. The five-match T20I series is levelled at 2-2 with the fifth and final T20I to take place on Saturday in Ahmedabad.

news

'Feels surreal': Prasidh Krishna on receiving maiden India call-up

Karnataka and Kolkata Knight Riders pacer Prasidh Krishna received maiden India call-up on Friday for the ODI series against England. Krishna was one of the three players alongside Krunal Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav to get selected for the three-match ODI series. The fast bowler expressed his delight and tweeted, “Feels surreal when you get the call to play for your country. It's like a dream come true. Excited to play my part and contribute to the success of the team. Thanks @BCCI. Can't wait to get started.” Prasidh has played 48 List A matches and has 81 wickets to his name while has scalped 18 wickets in 24 IPL matches for KKR. Suryakumar Yadav who was earlier picked up for the T20Is against England stamped his authority with the bat after scoring a fifty in the fourth match in Ahmedabad on Thursday. Yadav scored 57 off 31 as India posted 185/8 in 20 overs and later restricted the visitors to 177/8 to win the match by 8 runs and level the series. The fifth and final T20I will be played on Saturday at the same venue. The ODI series is slated to begin on March 23 in Pune. All the three matches will be held in Pune itself. Squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), KL Rahul (wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Krunal Pandya, Washington Sundar, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Md. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur.

news

Why there can’t be ‘I don’t Know’ call by the umpire: Virat Kohli argues

Indian skipper Virat Kohli has argued that the on-field umpires should have the option of not making a soft signal during a controversial decision. Kohli's opinion comes after Suryakumar Yadav's controversial dismissal in his debut innings when he was caught at deep square leg by Dawid Malan off the bowling of Sam Curran. Yadav, batting on 57, pulled Curran to the deep square where Malan claimed a clean catch and umpire KN Ananthapadmanabhan gave a soft signal of 'out' for the third umpire to cross-check. The third umpire Virender Sharma, even after going through multiple reviews, described the evidence as 'inconclusive', and even though there were a lot of doubts that it was a clean catch, the umpire couldn’t overturn his decision as the evidence remained inconclusive. Giving the example of how he as a captain has always appealed on catches that he is not sure of, Indian skipper Virat Kohli said that the umpire should just confirm it from the third umpire instead of giving a soft signal as out or not out. “If it's a half-and-half effort and the fielder's in doubt, I don't think the umpire from square leg would see that clearly and, you know, make a conclusive call. So the soft signal becomes that much more important and it's a tricky one,” he told Star Sports. Reasoning that other teams could bear the brunt of the soft signal in future as well and comparing the soft signal to the Umpire’s call during LBW, Kohli said, “I don't know why there cannot be a sort of 'I don't know' call for the umpire as well. Why does it have to be a conclusive one? Because then that [dictates] the whole decision completely. Similar to the argument we have about umpire's call as well." The 32-year-old further said that instead of complicating things with soft signals and the Umpires’ call, the game should be kept simple and linear for the viewers and also to avoid wrong decision making in high-pressure games. “So you want these things ironed out as much as possible, keep this game simple, keep it linear, have one set of rules which are not grey areas which we don't understand sometimes, and sometimes we do. So it's not ideal, especially in a high-pressure game that has a lot of things riding on it, a lot at stake. It's important to have a lot of clarity on the field," he added.